James Donald "Jimmy" Griffin (June 29, 1929 – May 25, 2008) was an
American politician
A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...
who served in the
New York State Senate (56th District, 1967–77) and then for 16 years as the
Mayor of Buffalo, New York
The following is a list of people who have served as mayors of the city of Buffalo in the U.S. state of New York.
List of mayors
Number of mayors by party affiliation
History
In 1853, the charter of the city was amended to include the tow ...
(1978–93). He later returned to public life serving as a member of the
Buffalo Common Council
The Buffalo Common Council is the legislative branch of the city of Buffalo, New York government. It is a representative assembly, with one elected member from each of nine districts: Niagara, Delaware, Masten, Ellicott, Lovejoy, Fillmore, Nort ...
.
Early life
Griffin, an
Irish American, hailed from
South Buffalo, the son of Helen (O'Brien) and Thomas Griffin. He served in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
during the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
.
Griffin was a registered
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
during his political career. However, he was very
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
compared to the party platform, especially on social issues. He was frequently cross-endorsed by the
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
and
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
parties. He was a Buffalo city councilman in the 1960s.
He was a member of the
New York State Senate from 1967 to 1977, sitting in the
177th,
178th,
179th,
180th,
181st, and
182nd New York State Legislature
The 182nd New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met in Albany from January 5, 1977, to December 31, 1978, during the third and fourth years of Hugh Carey's governorship.
Backgrou ...
s.
Mayor of Buffalo
Griffin was elected mayor of Buffalo in
November 1977, and was sworn in on January 1, 1978. He had lost the Democratic primary for mayor to then Deputy State Assembly Speaker
Arthur Eve. In the general election, he was the nominee of the Conservative Party and defeated Eve to be elected mayor. He was reelected in 1981, 1985, and 1989.
As mayor, Griffin was sometimes known for his outspoken personality. During a
January 1985 blizzard, he recommended to Buffalo residents "go home, buy a six pack of beer, and watch a good football game." This earned him the nickname "Jimmy Six Pack".
While mayor, he was the unsuccessful Republican nominee for Erie County executive in 1991, losing to incumbent
Dennis Gorski
Dennis T. Gorski (July 20, 1944 – July 4, 2021) was an American politician in New York and a Marine. A resident of Cheektowaga, New York, Gorski served as County Executive of Erie County, New York, which includes Buffalo and many of its subur ...
. In 1992, Griffin sought the Democratic nomination for president in the New Hampshire primary, finishing a very distant eighth to
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
. After the "Spring of Life" demonstration in April 1992 where Griffin encouraged
pro-life
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respon ...
groups such as
Operation Rescue to protest in Buffalo, he declined to seek a fifth term as mayor and was succeeded by Democrat
Anthony Masiello
Anthony M. Masiello (born April 28, 1947) is an American politician and former basketball player who served as Mayor of Buffalo, New York from 1994 to 2005. Prior to being mayor, he served as a member of the New York State Senate. He is currentl ...
.
Postmayoral career
Griffin remained as outspoken and controversial as a former mayor as he was during his career in City Hall. He frequently commented on public policy issues in Buffalo. He ran again for Mayor in the
1997 election, running on the
Right to Life line and losing to Masiello. He then unsuccessfully sought a seat in the
New York State Assembly against future Congressman
Brian Higgins
Brian Michael Higgins (born October 6, 1959) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for , serving since 2005. The district, numbered as the 27th district from 2005 to 2013 but as the 26th since 2013, includes Buffalo and N ...
(where Griffin was defeated in his home base of South Buffalo for the only time in his elector career) and was rumored to have an interest in a seat in the Erie County Legislature that was vacated in 2001, although in the end he did not run. In 2002, he led an effort to recall Masiello from office. This effort fell through because of petition discrepancies and disputes over whether a recall election was legal in New York State.
In 1996, Griffin entered the New Hampshire Democratic Presidential Primary election, finishing well behind incumbent Bill Clinton, and even garnering fewer votes than perennial candidate and satirist
Pat Paulsen
Patrick Layton Paulsen (July 6, 1927 – April 25, 1997) was an American comedian and satirist notable for his roles on several of the Smothers Brothers television shows, and for his satirical campaigns for President of the United States between ...
.
In 2003, Griffin was elected to a two-year term in the Buffalo Common Council, representing the South District. Taking office in 2004, Griffin was named Chairman of the Claims Committee and started working on fiscal issues relating to the Buffalo fiscal crisis. He also criticized Masiello's handling of city finances. Griffin focused much of his time on issues in his district.
In the spring of 2005, Griffin resigned from the council with several months left in his term. He said he had completed what he sought to accomplish as a councilman and was retiring from public life.
On January 28, 2007, during an interview on the Hardline with Hardwick radio program on Buffalo radio station
WBEN, Griffin said he might once again run for Erie County Executive as a Democrat. The County Executive at that time,
Joel Giambra, had announced he would not be seeking re-election. Then on April 15, 2007, he announced on
WWKB
WWKB (1520 AM) is a commercial radio station in Buffalo, New York. It broadcasts a sports betting radio format and is owned and operated by Audacy, Inc. Most programming is from the co-owned BetQL Radio Network, with some shows from CBS Sports R ...
's "Public Opinions with Wayne Mack" that he had discussed running again with his wife, and decided he did not wish to seek public office anymore.
However, on July 17, 2007, Griffin announced that he was joining the race for the
Erie County Executive seat, against fellow South Buffalonian and endorsed Democratic Party candidate Jim Keane. Griffin was correctly considered an underdog and did not have much—if any—money with which to run a campaign. When the votes were counted after the primary on September 18, 2007, Griffin ran 3rd in a three-way race with about 23% of the vote. He ran his campaign with only $11,000.00 against the millions his opponents spent on their campaigns. Griffin then said he had run his last electoral race and considered himself retired from political competition. Griffin later endorsed the candidacy of Republican candidate and with the assistance of his group of campaign volunteers, helped
Christopher C. Collins win the election for Erie County Executive.
Griffin died on May 25, 2008, at the
Father Baker Manor in Orchard Park, from
Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease
Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (CJD), also known as subacute spongiform encephalopathy or neurocognitive disorder due to prion disease, is an invariably fatal degenerative brain disorder. Early symptoms include memory problems, behavioral changes ...
. His wife, Margaret "Margie" Griffin (née McMahon), died in July 2011. The couple had three children.
Legacy
Griffin had 3 children named Maureen, Megan, and Tom.
Following his death, the
Buffalo Common Council
The Buffalo Common Council is the legislative branch of the city of Buffalo, New York government. It is a representative assembly, with one elected member from each of nine districts: Niagara, Delaware, Masten, Ellicott, Lovejoy, Fillmore, Nort ...
voted to rename the address of
Sahlen Field
Sahlen Field is a baseball park in Buffalo, New York, United States. Originally known as Pilot Field, the venue has since been named Downtown Ballpark, North AmeriCare Park, Dunn Tire Park, and Coca-Cola Field. Home to the Buffalo Bisons of the ...
to One James D. Griffin Plaza in his honor.
A
bronze sculpture
Bronze is the most popular metal for Casting (metalworking), cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply "a bronze". It can be used for statues, singly or in groups, reliefs, and small statuettes and figurines, as w ...
of Griffin titled ''
The First Pitch'' by artist William Koch was erected outside
Sahlen Field
Sahlen Field is a baseball park in Buffalo, New York, United States. Originally known as Pilot Field, the venue has since been named Downtown Ballpark, North AmeriCare Park, Dunn Tire Park, and Coca-Cola Field. Home to the Buffalo Bisons of the ...
in 2012 to honor Griffin's contributions in bringing the ballpark and professional baseball to Buffalo.
Until
Byron Brown
Byron William Brown II (born September 24, 1958) is an American politician who is the current mayor of Buffalo, New York. He has served as Buffalo's 62nd mayor since January 2006, the City's first African-American mayor and longest serving ...
swept his opponent to win a record 5th term in 2021, Griffin was the longest-serving mayor of Buffalo, and from January 3, 2021 until December 31, 2021, he shared this title with Brown, but at midnight on January 1, the tie was broken.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffin, James D.
1929 births
2008 deaths
Mayors of Buffalo, New York
New York (state) state senators
New York (state) Democrats
United States Army personnel of the Korean War
Candidates in the 1996 United States presidential election
Deaths from Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease
Neurological disease deaths in New York (state)
Infectious disease deaths in New York (state)
New York (state) Republicans
20th-century American politicians
Buffalo Common Council members