Editor's Note: This article was originally scheduled to be published on Feb. 2, 2026 but was delayed due to unforeseen technical delays.
BUFFALO N.Y. (Feb. 2, 2026) — Democratic candidate Jeremy Zellner and Republican candidate Dan Gagliardo took similar stances on the same issues in a UB-hosted forum Thursday night in Student Union 330 amidst a race to take over the recently-vacated State Senator seat in NYS’s 61st District in a special election Tuesday, Feb. 3. The district contains part of North and West Buffalo, the Villages of Kenmore and Williamsville, the City of Tonawanda, and the towns of Grand Island, Tonawanda, and Amherst, where UB’s North Campus is based.
Democrat Sean Ryan stepped down from his seat in Albany to run in Buffalo’s mayoral election in November, which he won.
Zellner has been involved in the Erie County Democratic Committee (ECDC) since 2003. His roles include the committee’s chairman, Democratic chief of staff and executive director. He has also served as the commissioner of the Erie County’s Board of Elections since 2017 but resigned the position in December to run for State Senate.
Gagliardo is the chairman of the Independent Health Foundation Board, and owns D’Avolio, a restaurant in Williamsville. He lost to his Democratic opponent — Amherst Deputy Town Supervisor and Councilmember Shawn Lacin — in a run for Amherst Town Supervisor in November.
Zellner has been endorsed by both the ECDC and multiple labor unions, including the local chapter of the American Transit Union, while Gagliardo has been endorsed by the Erie County Republican Committee and the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association, a police union.
Both candidates criticized the presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in Buffalo and their fatal shooting of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, saying that they were opposed to the treatment of immigrants and U.S. citizens by ICE, and that the murder of innocent people should be prosecuted.
“No one is above the law,” said Zellner, adding that local law enforcement doesn’t like ICE either and “doesn’t want them in their jails.”
Zellner continued, “Immigrants built Western New York. We need to treat them with respect and push back against the federal government’s attacks.”
“This is not a political thing. This is a common sense thing,” Gagliardo said. “If these people are guilty, they should be punished.”
Both candidates agreed on the need for better healthcare funding, and affordability for living in the state as a whole.
“So many people leave New York every year,” said Gagliardo, “Why? Because they can’t afford it.”
Zellner blamed the federal government for cutting millions in funding to programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and looked towards a plan to restore those lost funds with state money.
Zellner said "affordability will be a laser focus in Albany.”
Both agreed that SUNY, including UB, should keep getting public funding. While Zellner supported fully funding SUNY community colleges, the two said they were in support of adding more seasonal jobs and paid internships for students.
“I want UB students to come into the government and get involved,” Gagliardo said.
The two only took differing stances on one issue: Buffalo’s Metro Rail expansion into Amherst. The line’s most potential riders during the school year, UB students would be able to travel from North Campus - where most academic programing and near-campus apartments are held - to Downtown Campus - hosting UB’s medical school - without transferring between student-funded Stampede buses and the Metro Rail’s first stop on South Campus. Amherst residents had opposed the expansion during a public hearing late August.
Zellner took a vague stance, saying he wouldn’t oppose it if the local residents were in favor. On the other hand, Gagliargo directly shut the idea down saying locals already don’t support the expansion.
Early voting has just finished for the race Sunday night, with a total of 7,827 ballots counted according to the Erie County Board of Elections.
Any resident of the 61st State Senator District can vote at the polling sites with the district from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 3. More information can be found at the Erie County Board of Elections website.
Editor's Note: Zellner was determined by the Erie County Board of Elections to have won the election by 13,026 votes.
The news desk can be reached at news@ubspectrum.com.
Photo: Courtesy of Kenneth C. Zirkel | Wikimedia Commons
