Tag: Politics

Nov 5

2024

Infographic: Presidential picks in Erie-Niagara

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It’s Election Day. Four years ago, when Joe Biden beat Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, Erie County voted for the Democratic candidate while Niagara County voted for the Republican. The two counties have been at odds in three of the last five elections. Here’s a look at how Erie and Niagara counties voted in presidential elections going back to 2004: Source: New York State, Erie County, and Niagara County election boards.

Posted 3 months ago

Oct 28

2024

Ethics board says former Evans supervisor owes $23K

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Mary Hosler, Erie County’s chief auditor, should be fined $23,000 for payments she took but was not entitled to while serving as Evans town supervisor, the town’s Ethics Committee concluded last week. The five-member panel  agreed with a recent audit by the state comptroller’s office that found Hosler improperly took compensation for opting out of the town’s health insurance coverage.  (Investigative Post wrote about  the audit last month.) Elected officials were not entitled to such opt-out payments at the time Hosler sought the money, the ethics board concluded. On top of that, Hosler was covered by the town’s health insurance[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Oct 27

2024

Billionaire wants to buy parent company of Buffalo News

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A Florida billionaire is making noises about buying Lee Enterprises, and with it, The Buffalo News. The New York Times reported last week that David Hoffmann, worth $1.6 billion, has bought 5.2 percent of Lee’s stock and wants to obtain majority interest. Hoffman told The Times that while he recognizes the newspaper industry’s trend to digital, he believes print still has a future. And he believes in local news. As The Times wrote: “He wants to preserve community news — including more local sports coverage.”  The Times provided this background on the 72-year-old investor: Mr. Hoffmann is a relative newcomer to the[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Oct 24

2024

OTB hires two Brown lieutenants from City Hall

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Byron Brown answers questions from reporters at Thursday’s OTB meeting. Photo by Garrett Looker. Steven Casey, a longtime aide to Byron Brown and a political operative whose consulting firm pleaded guilty to felony charges in 2021, was hired Thursday as the former mayor’s right-hand man at the Western Regional Off-Track Betting. The OTB board voted to hire Casey for one year as chief administrative officer and chief of staff under Brown, OTB’s new president and CEO. Casey will be paid $190,000. OTB will retain Scott Kiedrowski, OTB’s current No. 2, who is named in a lawsuit alleging sexual harassment and[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Oct 20

2024

Brown brings long-time aide Steve Casey to OTB

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Steven Casey, left, and Byron Brown, right. File photo by WKBW. Steven M. Casey — Byron Brown’s former deputy mayor and top political advisor — is following his old boss to a job at Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. A source close to OTB leadership confirmed Casey, 58, is now working for the publicly owned gambling corporation and is on-site at Batavia Downs. The state comptroller’s office confirmed Casey began working part-time for OTB in September. OTB did not report a job title to the comptroller but projected his annual part-time wages would total $49,920. Casey — whose company pleaded[...]

Posted 3 months ago

Oct 17

2024

Mayoral hopeful enlists advisor with checkered past

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Six years ago Kevin O’Brien’s career as a sought-after Democratic political strategist appeared to be over, consumed by a sexual harassment scandal that cost him his job as a top aide to then New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. Today O’Brien, 42, is in Buffalo. He’s advising Garnell Whitfield, the former fire commissioner who is expected to announce his candidacy for Buffalo mayor sometime after next month’s general election. “He’s nationally experienced,” Whitfield told Investigative Post. “He’s not from here. He’s not part of the status quo here. He brings fresh eyes to the problems of this city.” Garnell[...]

Posted 4 months ago

Oct 13

2024

WNY pols carrying Trump’s water

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Erie County Sheriff John Garcia is regurgitating Donald Trump’s talking points on immigrants, essentially saying too many of them are lawless. Credit to Sandy Tan of The Buffalo News, who reported: “An overwhelming body of research indicates that immigrants, including immigrants who enter the country illegally, commit violent crimes at a much lower rate than the rest of the American population.” Perhaps the sheriff should focus his efforts on keeping prisoners in his jails alive. As we reported last month, the rate of deaths is higher under Garcia than his predecessor, Tim Howard, whose management of the jails was roundly[...]

Posted 4 months ago

Oct 10

2024

Ryan leads the mayoral money race

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State Sen. Sean Ryan is seeking reelection this fall, but he’s certainly raising and spending money like a guy who’s running for mayor of Buffalo next year. Ryan raised $110,000 over the last three months, according to his campaign committee’s most recent filing with the state elections board. Campaign finance disclosures for candidates on the ballot in November were due last Friday. The reports cover the period from July 11 to Sept. 30.  Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown announced two weeks ago he’d accepted a new job as president and CEO of Western Regional Off-Track Betting. Brown indicated he’d step down[...]

Posted 4 months ago
Investigative Post