Independent mayoral candidate Michael Gainer has an uphill battle in the Buffalo election, but that’s not stopping him from advocating major changes to local election practices.
Chief among the changes Gainer wants to see is open primaries, which would bring all candidates together in a unified primary election, giving all voters an opportunity to vote for any candidate. The top vote-getters would then move onto the general election.
Adopting the practices would help move away from city politics that are so dominated by one party, and often incumbents, Gainer said.
“This gives more access, more opportunity to more voices in our community, and it gets people excited about being involved," he said. "It makes people feel like they have a voice.”
Another cause Gainer is pushing for is ranked-choice voting, which would allow voters to rank their preferences for election winners. If there is no majority, then votes for the lowest candidate are distributed equally among remaining candidates and the process is repeated until a majority is achieved.
The actual decision for any changes would have to be made by legislative members, said Communications Director Derek Murphy of the Erie County Board of Elections.
“The Board of Elections carries out the law. We don't make the law," he said. "We're a ministerial agency, so any questions regarding term limits or ranked choice voting would be issues decided by local or state legislatures.”
Gainer also hopes to see a two-term limit implemented for all elected city positions.
He was removed as a primary election candidate after the State Supreme Court ruled he did not meet petition requirements of 2,000 valid signatures.
