Sometimes One Must Vote the Person and Not the Party
by Betty Jean Grant
Betty Jean Grant
I became acquainted with Michael ‘Mickey’ Kearns around 2009. He was the Councilmember for the South District in Buffalo, and he wanted to run for the NYS Assembly. Mickey was a staunch Democrat, and he was proud to run to represent the designated area, but the Erie County Democratic Committee had already picked another candidate to run for that seat. Mickey ran anyway.
Mickey was a Democrat, but he was able to get the support of Independent and Republican voters to join his fellow Democrats in supporting him for the many elections he won while serving in the NYS Assembly. In the Assembly, Mickey Kearn experienced backlash because of how he won those political elections with endorsements from political parties that did not usually vote, assisted or endorsed, candidates who were a Democrat.
When Democrat, Assemblyman Mickey Kearn went to his assigned office space in the Albany Legislative Office Building, he found out that his rooms were in the basement of the building or some undesirable office space! That slight, at the hands of his majority leading Democratic colleagues, did not change his ‘’Putting the People First’ agenda he had, as a proud, card carrying member of the Erie County Democrat Committee. When Mickey Kearns left the NYS Assembly to run for the Erie County Clerk Office, he had to rely on his supporters from all political parties to secure a win. And I don’t need to tell you that the ECDC was not happy at all about this! They had to deal with the fact that Mickey Kearns was a very effective and hardworking elected official who put the people first.
Mr. Kearns decided not to run in the 2026 Democratic Primary but to run in the November General Election. I wish him well and I know that he has a very nice opponent in the Democrat challenger, Steve Meyer. At the end of the day, the Erie County Clerk Office will be well served by either one of them.
Oh, I almost forgot. I think Mickey Kearns is the only elected official to host frequent meetings to deliver information to his constituents at the Merriweather Library on Jefferson Ave., in Buffalo.