Democrat Sean Ryan successfully defended his seat against Republican challenger Christine Czarnik in the 61st Senate District.
Unofficial figures from the Erie County Board of Elections show that with 99% of the vote counted, Ryan leads the race with 61% of the vote to Czarnik's 38%.
It is perhaps an unsurprising result if the amount of cash raised toward Ryan's re-election campaign is anything to go by. Ryan raised almost $500,000 toward his campaign committee according to the latest disclosure reports filed with the state Board of Elections.
The Senator said the push to raise all of that money came because of his opposition to the state’s new public campaign fund matching program. A program he said he didn’t use, but his Republican challenger Christine Czarnik did.
Czarnik raised $23,769 since March, and the Public Campaign Finance Board has approved more than $100,000 in matching funds for her campaign since Oct.
"I did not want to participate in the matching grant program, because I don't think taxpayers should fund elections," Ryan said. "But I had to raise a lot of money in case [Czarnik] was able to get more money from the state taxpayer to run the campaign.”
But there is more than one active campaign committee registered to Ryan. As previously reported by WBFO, the Senator has another. The Sean Ryan Victory Fund is linked to an undisclosed statewide office, raising questions over Ryan’s political future.
In September, Czarnik claimed that the fund proves Ryan has his sights set elsewhere.
"His personal and political ambitions have led him to seek another office," she said.
On election night, Ryan told WBFO that the fund is akin to a campaign go-bag.
"The victory campaign is in case an opening occurs at the Attorney General's level. So if, in fact, that became open, you have to be ready," Ryan said.
Ryan's name has consistently been associated with a potential run for office as Buffalo Mayor in 2025, but he has remained noncommittal when directly asked if he intends to announce his candidacy in the future. That did not change as the votes were being counted on election night.
"I'm heartened that people are looking at me for candidacies for another office. But tonight, I'm really concentrating on what I hope will be a great victory and the people of the 61st Senate District returning me to Albany can so I can keep doing good work."
