BUFFALO, N.Y. — In January of 2022 Buffalo's Mayor, Byron Brown was sworn in for his 5th term as the 62nd Mayor of New York's 2nd largest City. He was first elected as the Mayor of Buffalo back in November of 2005.
After almost 20 years in office, his time as mayor is coming to an end.
Brown announced on Monday in a press conference that he is stepping down as the City of Buffalo Mayor, and will be taking on the role of CEO for Off Track Betting.
He was Buffalo's first African-American Mayor and the first to step down from the position since Frank Sedita did so in March of 1973.
It all began back in August when OTB had initially announced that they would be looking for a new president and CEO. The question of whether the current Mayor of Buffalo would be interested in that role had also come up.
As early September approached those questions regarding Byron Brown taking the role became more real as the OTB selected him for the position and offered him a contract.
At an OTB special board meeting held on September 5, 2 On Your Side asked the members of the board tough questions regarding the selection which can be read by clicking here.
Mayor Brown sent out a statement on September 5 saying "The Western New York Off Track Betting Corporation Board of Directors voted unanimously today to offer me the position of President and CEO. I appreciate the vote of confidence in me and my record of success as Mayor of Buffalo. At this point, a contract still needs to be negotiated before the position is accepted. I look forward to meeting with the Chairman of the Board to start the process toward final approval of a contract. In the meantime, I will continue to serve in my capacity as Mayor."
Following that announcement from Brown, the OTB shared that they had approved the contract for him on September 26. This though still did not confirm whether or not he would be accepting, although OTB board members were confident in what was to come.
During his interview with Claudine Ewing, she asked if he was going to clean up issues since the Western Regional OTB has been called a political dumping ground mired in corruption. He said, "I am not going there to be a politician, I'm going there to be a business executive."
When Brown leaves office, Buffalo Common Council President Christopher Scanlon will become mayor.
Read our previous coverage of the OTB's process when choosing a president and CEO attached in the articles below.
2 On Your Side's Claudine Ewing was the first reporter to sit down and discuss with Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown his plans to resign. You can watch the interview here or by clicking the video below.