{"id":596,"date":"2026-08-17T09:41:18","date_gmt":"2026-08-17T09:41:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businessrelocationdigest.com\/?p=596"},"modified":"2026-08-17T09:41:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-17T09:41:18","slug":"jeremy-zellner-may-win-reelection-as-county-party-chair-but-what-happens-next","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businessrelocationdigest.com\/?p=596","title":{"rendered":"Jeremy Zellner may win reelection as county party chair, but what happens next?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

State Sen. Jeremy Zellner is likely on track to win an eighth term as chair of the Erie County Democratic Committee.<\/p>\n

Read more In purple Suffolk County, Democrats are weighing a leadership change<\/a><\/p>\n

After losing his June state Senate primary to Assembly Member Jonathan Rivera by 10 points, Zellner retains strong support among Democratic committee members heading into the September reorganization meeting, even with some questioning whether the primary results open the door for a new county leader. Zellner is facing challenges from Amherst Council Member John Davis and Erie County Legislator Jeanne Vinal.<\/p>\n

While observers do not see Zellner losing, the race plays out as speculation swirls that Zellner could receive a job from Gov. Kathy Hochul, possibly commissioner of the state Department of Motor Vehicles.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbsolutely, it\u2019s his race to lose,\u201d O\u2019Donnell & Associates Managing Partner Jack O\u2019Donnell said of Zellner. \u201cI mean, the committee members have been decided. It\u2019s not a public fight. I think one of the realities, and this has been true for a long time, is that the coalition that can choose the chairman is not always the same coalition that elects people or that wins primaries \u2013 or especially wins primaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some have suggested it is time for Zellner to go after his defeat to Rivera and the loss by the party-backed candidate for Rivera\u2019s Assembly seat to Democratic Socialists of America candidate Adam Bojak. Opposition to Zellner had been mounting in other quarters over the party\u2019s decision to nominate Zellner over Rivera in February\u2019s special election to replace now-Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan in the state Senate.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Donnell said a desire for change after 14 years of Zellner as party chair, in addition to the primary results, were part of the conversations he had been hearing.<\/p>\n

Zellner said he routinely stays in contact with committee members, which helps his reelection chances. He pointed to his record in office, including raising $15 million and an 89% success rate for party-endorsed candidates in primaries and a successful year last year. Zellner is backed by both Hochul and Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz. Zellner did not think this year\u2019s primary will play a role.<\/p>\n

Read more This week\u2019s biggest Winners & Losers<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a historic off-season election, so I don\u2019t think a primary that four out of five people stayed home really has anything to do with the leadership of this great county committee,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Davis disagreed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the ECDC endorsement, backed by a chairman who lost by 10 points, is pretty significant, and we can\u2019t pretend that it didn\u2019t happen,\u201d he said. \u201cI think the voters sent us a message, and as a leader, we have a responsibility to listen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Zellner has been endorsed by every other town elected official in Amherst and each of Vinal\u2019s county legislative colleagues.<\/p>\n

Vinal did not return requests for comment.<\/p>\n

If Zellner is reelected and then takes the DMV job or another post with the Hochul administration, he would have to give up the county chair post. If that happens, then the county party\u2019s executive committee would select his replacement. The executive committee is dominated by allies of Poloncarz and Zellner. Some are calling on Zellner to step down before September to allow the broader committee to pick the next chair.<\/p>\n

While multiple sources have told City & State that Hochul would likely give Zellner a job in her administration after the November election, Zellner said no discussions had taken place. He indicated that he is focused on next year\u2019s county executive race, which will be the first open race for the job in two decades. Poloncarz announced years ago that he will not seek a fifth term.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy priority here is to get reelected for an eighth term as party leader and guide our party through the county executive process of next year because it\u2019s a really important year, and that has been my goal all along,\u201d Zellner said.<\/p>\n

Read more NYC schools chancellor isn\u2019t giving up on NYC Reads<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Questions remain about how long he\u2019ll be in the job, or whether he might be more vulnerable in two years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":595,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,92],"tags":[7,93],"class_list":["post-596","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-new-york-state","category-politics","tag-new-york-state","tag-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nJeremy Zellner may win reelection as county party chair, but what happens next? - Business Relocation Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/businessrelocationdigest.com\/?p=596\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Jeremy Zellner may win reelection as county party chair, but what happens next? 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