Election day is Tuesday and the biggest local race is for Erie County Executive pitting incumbent Republican Chris Collins against Democratic challenger Mark Polencarz. Collins spent the day Sunday at the Bills game talking with fans about the issues.
A Siena Research poll conducted by the Buffalo News and WGRZ-TV shows the race to be a statistical dead-heat. Polencarz Sunday called a press conference to discuss the results..
The race is in a dead heat. The final poll conducted by the Siena Research Institute finds that both incumbent Republican Chris Collins and Democratic challenger Mark Poloncarz are tied at 48 percent. Five percent of those surveyed are still undecided.
Pollster Steven Greenberg says the election will be decided by who gets a greater turnout. Both candidates agree. Poloncarz says he'll be trying to get out the vote between now and Tuesday.
"We're going to be talking with thousands of voters about why Tuesday matters and why they need to get out to vote," Poloncarz said. "I believe I'm the best candidate to serve the next four years as executive."
Collins spent part of Saturday at his campaign headquarters in Williamsville where phone banks were manned by volunteers calling voters, urging them to cast their ballots on Tuesday.
"Sometimes, there's a complacency," Collins said. "If only 40 percent of the people vote, that means 60 percent are not. That's always a concern."
Siena surveyed 1,319 Erie County voters, one of the largest sample sizes ever, according to the pollster.
The survey was commissioned by the Buffalo News and WGRZ television.
And on the eve of elections, members of the Buffalo Common Council held a rally for County Executive Candidate Mark Poloncarz and County Clerk Candidate Maria Whyte on the steps of City Hall late Monday morning to encourage city residents to get out to vote.
Collins attended at "Get Out the Vote" rally with former Buffalo Bills Thurman Thomas and Ruben Brown. He's also conducting his final Jobs Tour Monday.