Buffalo Public Schools teacher Eve Shippens ran as a progressive against North District Common Councilmember Joseph Golombek in the 2023 Democratic Primary. She lost that primary by about 40 points, but she still wanted to advocate for some of the issues that mattered most to her, like the environment, lead pipe removal and education.
So she and a running mate decided to run for the two seats on the Erie Democratic Committee representing the North District’s 21st Election District.
“I had enough support in this Common Council race to know that there were some voices not being brought to the table, and so I wanted to run and really be able to represent that,” Shippens said. “In Buffalo, there is a pretty big progressive wing of the Democratic Party, and the Democratic Party should be a big umbrella. It should represent progressives, centrists, a little-bit-right-leaning Dems. It should represent everyone, because we're all living in the city. We all have common interests, and so all the voices should be represented.”
Shippens isn’t alone. There are nine contested races for Erie County Democratic Committee across the City of Buffalo during this month’s primary elections, many of them with progressive candidates.
The Erie County Democratic Committee’s main job is to endorse candidates in party primaries. But that endorsement is more than just a seal of approval. It gives chosen candidates access to campaign infrastructure that helps them gather petition signatures, canvass likely voters, purchase lawn signs, secure spots in parades and run their campaigns. That gives party-endorsed candidates a leg up over their primary opponents, who have to organize that campaign infrastructure themselves. And since parts of Erie County are heavily Democratic, the primary is sometimes the only race that matters.
“I think in Buffalo particularly – and in Erie County, we sit around and we scratch our heads, ‘Why a lot of these positions uncontested?’” Stephanie Adams, a progressive candidate in the Niagara District’s 13th election district who wanted to advocate for improvements to the neighborhood park on Massachusetts Avenue, addiction treatment programs and other issues that affect her district. “A lot of these committees are just plugged in with people who are part of the usual machine, and so we’re not cultivating awareness of the process at the neighborhood level, and that means that people are not being brought in naturally from the neighborhoods, and instead, the machine is selecting folks.”
Committee members represent individual election districts — which are usually just a few blocks or an individual neighborhood — and only the registered party members who live in that election district are allowed to vote for their district’s two committee members, meaning that races for committee are often decided by just a few votes.
“If 10 people even go and vote in this, it’ll be amazing,” Shippens said of her own race.
But those small districts also allow committee members to represent the interests of their individual neighborhoods.
“Much of our neighborhood is composed of sidewalks that are crumbled away, in some cases nonexistent. The closest public library is a 45-minute walk away. We have vacant lots that could become new development projects and contribute to the vibrancy and walkability of our neighborhood,” Chris Hawley, a progressive running for re-election in the Fillmore District’s 21st election district alongside his running mate, former Erie County legislator Gregory Olma, said. “There are all sorts of things that that we’re already working with elected officials on, and being a member of the Erie County Democratic committee, I think helps elevate our voice.”
Some committee members, like North District Councilmember Joseph Golombek, say that neighborhood-level representation is more important than advancing political ideals.
“A lot of people — whether it’s old guard or whether it’s progressive — they feel that they know what’s best for the community, and they don’t talk to the community. That’s why I’ve been a committee member since 1984,” Golombek, who’s running for reelection in the North District’s 13th Election District, said. “I think that that’s very important, that you talk to residents and you find out what residents want.”
But even if progressives sweep this year’s races for committee, they probably won’t be able to make much practical change. Nine races in Buffalo and one in Brant are contested this cycle, but there are hundreds of committee members. But Hawley says progressives could have another bite at the apple next cycle and make committee races as competitive as they were when he first joined the committee.
“If there was an organized citywide effort for average citizens who are involved in the community to run, then I think we’d have a much stronger Democratic Party. But that’s not happening this year. There are just too few people doing it, but there is the opportunity, I think, to undertake such an effort perhaps two years from now.”
Polls close at 9 p.m. on Primary Day. To learn more about this year’s primary elections, contact your county board of elections or read more on our website here.