Buffalo mayor to take job with Western Regional OTB
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown made it official this afternoon, announcing that he is stepping down for the post he has held since 2006.
In a press conference, Brown said, “I am announcing my plan to resign as mayor Buffalo in the coming weeks. I will start a new opportunity as president and CEO of Western Regional Off Track Betting Corporation.”
Browns departure has been rumored for months and OTB officially offered him the position earlier this month.
Brown, who lost the Democratic Primary for mayor in 2021 to India Walton, winning re-election as mayor only after a write-in campaign put together by an odd coalition of political influences, said his decision to step down from the post of mayor wasn’t an easy one but the “time was right.”
Buffalo Common Council president Chris Scanlon will serve as acting mayor for the next year until the November 2025 general election.
Scanlon issued a statement on X, saying he is “prepared for my city charter responsibility to serve as mayor with excitement and optimism, and I am honored and humbled by the opportunity to lead the City of Buffalo.”
Scanlon, who represents the South Park, Hopkins-Tifft and Seneca-Cazenovia neighborhoods in South Buffalo, has been a councilmember for 12 years, nine of which were in leadership positions.
“In the coming days, I will continue to be in regular communication with Mayor Brown and his administration as we coordinate and implement a seamless transition,” Scanlon added.
Brown replaces Henry Wojtaszek as president and CEO of WROTB, receiving an annual salary of $295,000. Wojtaszek recently accepted a buyout from the board and will retire on Dec. 31.
