BUFFALO, N.Y. — Garnell Whitfield is ready to enter the political world. Sources close to the former Buffalo Fire Commissioner say he is preparing to run for mayor of Buffalo.
Whitfield has been an advocate for social justice locally and nationally since the May 14, 2022 mass shooting inside a Buffalo supermarket. His mother Ruth was one of ten people killed by a self-proclaimed white supremacist.
Whitfield is seeking the office that is currently held by Byron Brown.
Brown has been offered a job with the Western Regional Off-Track Betting in Western New York to be their next president and CEO.
The Public Benefit Corporation board of directors held a special meeting last week and unanimously voted Brown into the position.
He has yet to formally accept the job.
If Brown takes the job, Buffalo Common Council President Christopher Scanlon will become acting mayor.