Zeneta Everhart, Leah Halton-Pope sworn in as first female members of Buffalo Common Council since 2014
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — Zeneta Everhart and Leah Halton-Pope were sworn in Monday as the first female members of the Buffalo Common Council since 2014.
Everhart, the mother of Tops mass shooting survivor Zaire Goodman, will represent the Masten District of Buffalo. She had previously served as an aide to State Senator Tim Kennedy.
She ran on a platform of improving housing as well as quality of life for both the Masten District as well as across the city. She has also campaigned for gun reform in both Albany and Washington, D.C.
“Today has been far too long in the making,” Kennedy said. “We’re giving a new voice and a new energy to Masten that is going to move mountains for the people of our community and our great city.”
“Zeneta and I have known each other for a little over seven years now,” Kennedy added. “The first time I sat down with Zeneta, I knew I was speaking to someone special. I knew I was speaking to somebody that had heart and soul and spirit for our community. Someone that was just a gentle, honorable person.”
The seat in the Masten District was vacated by Ulysees Wingo, who decided to not seek re-election.
“Never in my lifetime did I even dream I would be standing right here. I used to write stories about it in my journal hoping that the savior from somewhere would come and fix it,” Everhart said. “So now, I am in a position where I can actually fix it because I went through it. I can fix it for other families because they’re going through what I dealt with. I’m honored to do that.”
Everhart praises Biden’s announcement of new Gun Violence Prevention Office
Leah Halton-Pope was also sworn in on Monday, to represent the Ellicott District in the common council.
Before her run for the council seat, Halton-Pope was a longtime advisor to State Assembly Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes and ran on a platform that focused on quality neighborhood schools, healthcare and promoting home ownership across the city.
“I stand here with immense gratitude and a deep sense of responsibility to you all that I felt from day one, from the minute I made the announcement,” Halton-Pope said. “The weight that nobody really told you that you feel immediately when you decide to take an office.”
She is replacing Darius Pridgen, who also did not seek re-election. Pridgen had also served as the president of the Buffalo Common Council.
Leah Halton-Pope wins Ellicott District primary election
“This office needs to create its own legacy. It is developing and needs a new legacy,” chief of staff and Halton-Pope’s husband Marc Pope said. “So to the staff, continue to treat the Ellicott District with the utmost care, continue to treat this city with the utmost care and concern.”
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown said that Halton-Pope will be a major help in negotiating the city’s budget and that her experience working at the state level will be a plus.
“All of us in city government, myself and all of the councilmembers are going to need her experience as we negotiate and navigate the city budget,” Brown said. “By having someone on the council who has members of the state assembly on speed dial will be a very helpful thing.”
Niagara District Councilman David Rivera and South District Councilman Chris Scanlon are running for the Buffalo Common Council presidency. The vote, which is being held among the nine councilmembers, will be on Tuesday.
Everhart and Halton-Pope, the first two female members in the council in a decade, are looking forward to working together.
“Two women in one day,” Halton-Pope said. “That says something about where we’re going and having diversity in thought and diversity in ideas is critical in this moment in time … we’ll be able to some amazing things together for this city.”
You can watch both swearing-in ceremonies in the video players below.
Aidan Joly joined the News 4 staff in 2022. He is a graduate of Canisius College. You can see more of his work here.
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