BUFFALO, N.Y. — Unlike the four-term incumbent she defeated in a Democratic primary on Tuesday, which will in all likelihood assure her election in November as Buffalo's 63rd mayor, India Walton will essentially be starting from scratch.
Walton, 38, a former school nurse and socialist community activist, has never held office before, and unlike Mayor Byron Brown, she has not spent years forging alliances with political and business leaders inside the system.
Should her stunning unofficial victory hold through the counting of absentee ballots, and if she is able to fend off a potential challenge from Brown through a write-in campaign in November, she will then occupy the second floor office of City Hall, which has been Brown's domain for 16 years.
Along with that, she will be given the mantle of responsibility of running and managing New York State's second largest city.
She will also have to forge many working relationships, first and foremost, perhaps with the Buffalo Common Council.
"Personally, she has worked well with me," said Common Council President Darius Pridgen, recalling the work he and Walton did to develop the city's land trust.
"I've seen the evolution of a person ... who told me that she learned to be more of a community organizer than an activist," said Pridgen, who added that he wholeheartedly endorsed Walton's entry into the primary but declined to say if he actually voted for her.
"I'm all for democracy and for people running for office, so I supported her running for mayor, but my vote is my business."
Besides, Pridgen insists that at this point who he voted for is immaterial.
"You have to work with the people who the people elected," Pridgen said. "Put another way: As an elected official, nobody elected me to go against whom they chose to elect. They elected me to work with people, to get things done, and that's what we need to do."
Pridgen expects there to be a learning curve for Walton, just as there is for any first-time office holder, especially in holding the city's top office.
"When I got into office, I thought some things would be simple," Pridgen said. "But what I found out was that even that which was hard, was not impossible."
He believes Walton will learn similarly after being sworn in.
"She didn't get to this point by herself. ... She had people supporting her, and if you can lead, you can lead. And she now has a half of a year to get prepared for this," he said.