The mayor of Buffalo, NY is Sean Ryan, who took office on January 1, 2026, after winning the November 2025 general election with about 72 percent of the vote. He runs the day-to-day operations of New York’s second-largest city, home to roughly 278,000 residents, under a strong-mayor charter that gives the office real executive authority rather than a ceremonial role next to the nine-member Common Council.
Ryan, a former state senator, replaced acting Mayor Christopher Scanlon, who had stepped up from his position as Common Council president in October 2024 after Byron Brown resigned to become CEO of the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corporation.1City of Buffalo. Mayor Brown Announces His Upcoming Resignation Brown had held the job for nearly 20 years. Ryan won the Democratic primary in June 2025 against Scanlon and three other candidates, then beat Republican James Gardner and independent Michael Gainer in November.
What the Mayor Actually Controls
Buffalo runs on a strong-mayor system, and the charter backs that up with direct authority over the city’s administrative machinery. The mayor appoints and removes an executive assistant and other subordinates authorized by law or ordinance, which in practice means picking the people who run policing, firefighting, public works, and the rest of the departments that deliver city services.2eCode360. City of Buffalo Code – Article 4 The Mayor
Every ordinance or resolution the Common Council passes also lands on the mayor’s desk. A signature makes it law. A veto sends it back, and the council then has to either renegotiate or round up a supermajority to override. That push and pull between the two branches is the engine of city government, and it traces to the 1928 charter that first separated executive power from the council.3City of Buffalo. History
The budget is where that leverage shows up most clearly. The mayor proposes spending for the coming fiscal year, and the figures are substantial: the proposed general fund for fiscal year 2026–27 totaled $681.1 million in both revenues and appropriations.4Office of the New York State Comptroller. DiNapoli Releases Budget Review for City of Buffalo The Common Council can amend what the mayor sends over, but the mayor can veto those amendments, and the council needs a supermajority to push past the veto. The council has the final vote on paper; the mayor shapes the terms of the fight.
Where the Mayor’s Authority Stops
Public education is not part of the job. Buffalo’s Board of Education members are elected by voters, not appointed by the mayor, and the district runs on its own separate budget outside the city’s general fund.5New York State Senate. New York Education Law 2553 – Board of Education; Eligibility; How Chosen; Term of Office; Vacancies The mayor can push an education agenda publicly but cannot control school governance directly.
There is also a state-level check on the office. Under New York Public Officers Law Section 33, the governor has the authority to remove a municipal mayor. Gubernatorial removal of a sitting mayor is rare, but it is a legal backstop that sits alongside regular elections.
Term Length and Elections
The mayor serves a four-year term. Elections run in odd-numbered years, with the next one scheduled for 2029, and the winner is sworn in on January 1 following the vote.2eCode360. City of Buffalo Code – Article 4 The Mayor
There are no term limits. The charter says plainly that any mayor is eligible for re-election, which is how Byron Brown held the office for nearly two decades.2eCode360. City of Buffalo Code – Article 4 The Mayor Because Buffalo leans heavily Democratic, the June primary often settles the race in practical terms before the November general election.
What Happens When the Mayor Can’t Serve
The charter treats a permanent vacancy and a short absence differently.
If the mayor resigns, dies, is removed, or becomes permanently unable to serve, the president of the Common Council becomes acting mayor with full executive powers and holds the office until January 1 following the next general election at which a successor can legally be chosen for the rest of the term.2eCode360. City of Buffalo Code – Article 4 The Mayor That is exactly the path Scanlon followed after Brown’s 2024 resignation.
For temporary absences, like travel outside New York State or a short medical issue, the mayor must pre-designate an acting mayor at the start of each term. The designee has to be a confirmed city officer other than the police or fire commissioner, and the designation is filed in writing with the city clerk. If no designation is on file, the Common Council president fills the gap by default.2eCode360. City of Buffalo Code – Article 4 The Mayor
Salary
The mayor’s annual salary was $178,518 as of 2024, among the higher-paid municipal executive positions in upstate New York. The Common Council can adjust the salary through the budget process, though changes typically do not take effect during a sitting mayor’s current term. The nine council members who serve alongside the mayor are elected by district to represent Buffalo’s individual neighborhoods.6City of Buffalo. Common Council