Former Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown appears to have made a $1,500 donation to the Sean Ryan for Buffalo campaign committee, but Ryan’s campaign rejected the cash.
Brown made the donation in an individual capacity on Sept. 17. BTPM NPR has seen a receipt appearing to show that Ryan’s campaign refunded the money on the same day.
While Brown's address was listed as a PO Box rather than his home address, the refund receipt listed the donor's occupation as "Mayor, City of Buffalo," and the PO Box address has been used to make political donations under Byron Brown's name dating back to 2010.
A Ryan campaign spokesperson said the contribution was “not accepted” and the rejection of Brown’s cash will be reflected in amended campaign filings made to the New York State Board of Elections in the coming days.
No reason was given for the refusal, but it’s perhaps unsurprising considering Ryan’s less-than-favorable public comments concerning Brown.
In fact, Ryan has made it clear he’s not a fan of the former mayor.
In 2021, Ryan endorsed Brown’s competitor, India Walton, in the 2021 Democratic primary for Buffalo mayor.
In his own campaign Ryan has repeatedly attacked decisions made under Brown’s 18-year tenure: he blames the city’s fiscal problems on “years of irresponsible budgets” and the city’s housing issues on the Brown administration’s demolition of vacant properties. He has also alleged ethics violations and a practice of nepotism in City Hall on Brown’s watch.
The former mayor gave more to Ryan’s mayoral bid than most individual donors in recent months. The average individual contribution in the latest disclosure report – which spans from July 12 until September 27 - was $586.
Brown has not returned an emailed request to his spokesperson for comment, and calls to that spokesperson went unanswered.
Brown’s recent donations
Brown has given money to a handful of campaign committees since he stepped down as Buffalo mayor in October 2024 to become president and CEO of Western Regional Offtrack Betting.
In September, he donated $250 to Kevin Hardwick’s campaign committee in his bid to be re-elected as Erie County Comptroller.
He also made donations to Rochester-area politicians including a $1,500 donation to Adam Bello’s campaign committee for Monroe County Executive, and the same amount to Malik Evans' campaign for Rochester mayor.
