Butler Continues Binghamton Mayoral Write-In Campaign With Green Party Support

By Jillian Forstadt

Published October 21, 2021 at 4:39 PM EDT

BINGHAMTON, NY (WSKG)—Early voting begins Saturday, Oct. 26. Election Day is Tuesday, November 2nd.

Democrat Joe Burns and Republican Jared Kraham are on the ballot in the race for Binghamton mayor.

Screen Shot 2021-10-21 at 4.19.42 PM — Ken Butler continues to rally support for a write-in campaign in the Binghamton mayoral race. (For Ken Butler's campaign Facebook page)

Ken Butler will not be on the ballot, but is running a write-in campaign as an independent. He gained support from the Broome-Tioga Green Party.

The party voted to endorse Butler in June. Green Party Chair Rick Sprout said the more options voters have, the better.

“He’s a clear alternative to the Democratic and Republican parties, which we feel are very similar,” Sprout said.

There are 150 voters registered with the Green Party in the City of Binghamton, according to the Broome County Board of Elections.

Sprout said the chapter's membership is small, and its ability to help Butler campaign has been limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Butler tried to get on the ballot, but commissioners of the Broome County Board of Elections sustained objections brought by the Binghamton City Democratic Committee to Butler’s petitions in July.

Butler has since continued to campaign on issues like affordable housing and broadband access. He did not return WSKG’s multiple requests for comment.