A new poll shows Buffalo incumbent Mayor Byron Brown ahead of Democratic nominee India Walton by 10% as the election approaches in November.
The latest Emerson College/WIVB phone poll was conducted Aug. 7-8. The sample consisted of "Buffalo likely voters, n=862, with a margin of error (MOE) of +/- 3.3 percentage points. Data was collected via a cellphone sample using SMS-to-web and a landline sample using IVR," said Emerson.
The poll asked the question, "If the Buffalo mayoral election were held today, who would you vote for?"
The results put Brown at 50% of those surveyed. He leads among Hispanics, men and age groups over 35 years old.
But Black voters are split between Brown and Walton, with a slight lead for Walton. Walton also leads in the 18-to-34 age group and among those with a college degree.
The poll found 8% of voters are currently undecided.
Voters were also asked about what issue facing Buffalo should be the first priority of the next mayor. Crime led the list with 26%, followed by housing (15%), police reform (12%), education (10%), development (10%), jobs (10%), COVID-19 (6%), health care (3%) and homelessness (2%).
Walton won the Democratic primary in June, but Brown is waging a write-in campaign. The poll's results suggest Brown may have a base that did not come out to vote in the primary, but is now tuning in for the general election.
