List of mayors of Niagara Falls, New York


The office of mayor of Niagara Falls, New York is currently held by Robert Restaino. Prior to the establishment of the mayorship, the highest official in Niagara Falls was known as the "village president" and was held by Peter A. Porter in 1878.

List of mayors

# !NamePicturePartyTook officeLeft officeNotes
1George B. WrightDemocraticApril 26, 1892March 1893
2Mighellis B. ButlerDemocratMarch 1893March 1894Welcomed the Duke of Veragua to Niagara Falls in 1893.
3David PhillipsRepublicanMarch 1894March 1895Elected with an 800-vote majority.
4Obediah W. CutlerRepublicanMarch 1895March 1896Cutler is referenced as being the prime mover behind the Suspension Bridge water works which was established in 1876.
5Arthur SchoellkopfRepublicanMarch 1896March 1897
His campaign slogan was "municipal government is business, not politics" and he was overwhelmingly elected by every district in the city. After a year in office, Schoellkopf decided not to run for a second term citing that "his private business would not allow him to devote the necessary time to the city’s affairs" and declined the Republican mayoral nomination for 1897.
6Arthur C. HastingsRepublicanMarch 1897March 1899On April 15, 1897, a charter amendment increased the mayor’s term to two years so Hastings served again from 1898 to 1899.
7Mighellis B. ButlerDemocraticMarch 1900March 1901Reelected after serving as the 2nd Mayor of Niagara Falls.
8John M. HancockRepublicanApril 15, 1902December 31, 1904
9Obediah W. CutlerRepublicanJanuary 1, 1905December 31, 1906This was Cutler's second time in office, having been elected first in 1895 and serving as the 4th Mayor of Niagara Falls.
10Anthony C. DouglassDemocraticJanuary 1, 1907December 31, 1910Douglass was a contractor with a business at the Jewett Building and resided at 259 Third St.
11Philip J. KellerDemocraticJanuary 1, 1911December 31, 1912Keller, of "Phil J. Keller & Son" was a butcher with a successful shop at 2013 Main St.
12William LaughlinDemocraticJanuary 1, 1913December 31, 1915During 1914, the Legislature enacted the "Optional City Government Law" which permitted cities of the second and third class the option of adopting one of seven forms of local government. Voters adopted "Plan C" with the council/manager plan to become effective in 1916. By 1916, there were 98 council-manager cities in the United States.
13George W. WhiteheadRepublicanJanuary 1, 1916December 31, 1920
14Maxwell M. ThompsonRepublicanJanuary 1, 1920December 31, 1924At this time, the mayors office was in the Gluck Building on Second and Falls Streets. Thompson declined to run for re-election.
15William LaughlinDemocraticJanuary 1, 1925December 31, 1931
16Frank A. JenssRepublicanJanuary 1, 1932December 31, 1935Jenss served three terms as a city councilmen prior to being elected mayor. He declined to seek reelection and instead supported Walter Greig, then councilman.
17Dr. W. Levell DraperRepublicanJanuary 1, 1936December 31, 1939
18Ernest W. Mirrington, Jr.RepublicanJanuary 1, 1940December 31, 1942Resigned in 1942 to join the U.S. Army. Mirrington had previously tried to join the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard.
19Eugene C. ButlerDemocraticJanuary 1, 1942December 31, 1942Appointed to fill the term of Ernest W. Mirrington, Jr., won the Democratic nomination for mayor but was defeated in the general election by Stephen A. Lamb.
20Stephen A. LambRepublicanJanuary 1, 1943December 31, 1947
21William R. LuptonDemocraticJanuary 1, 1948December 31, 1951
22Ernest W. Mirrington, Jr.RepublicanJanuary 1, 1952December 31, 1955In May 1952, there was an 18-day strike of 600 city employees that disrupted services. The strike was settled through the efforts of a citizens’ committee.
23Calvin L. KellerRepublicanJanuary 1, 1956December 31, 1962Keller welcomed John F. Kennedy to Niagara Falls in 1962 during his visit to Western New York.
24E. Dent LackeyDemocraticJanuary 1, 1963December 31, 1975Lackey was an ex-Methodist minister who served three, four-year terms.
25Michael C. O'LaughlinDemocraticJanuary 1, 1976December 31, 1991O'Laughlin served four, four-year terms.
26Jacob A. PalilloRepublicanJanuary 1, 1992December 31, 1995Palillo was president of the Niagara Falls Fire Fighters Association for 20 years and first ran for mayor in 1987. Elected in 1991 defeating Anthony F. Quaranto, but in 1995 lost a re-election bid to James C. Galie.
27James C. GalieDemocraticJanuary 1, 1996December 31, 1999Galie was a former assistant police chief elected last year on a pro-casino platform
28Irene J. EliaRepublicanJanuary 1, 2000December 31, 2003
29Vincenzo V. AnelloDemocraticJanuary 1, 2004December 31, 2007
30Paul DysterDemocraticJanuary 1, 2008December 31, 2019
31Robert RestainoDemocraticJanuary 1, 2020Present

List of village presidents

History

The 2015 mayoral election was held on Tuesday November 3, 2015, with the following candidates: Incumbent mayor Paul Dyster and challenger John Accardo. Dyster won his third term as Mayor of Niagara Falls. With the win, Dyster joined E. Dent Lackey as the only two three-term mayors in Niagara Falls and became the second longest tenured after former Mayor Michael O’Laughlin, the city’s longest-tenured mayor who held four consecutive terms from 1976 to 1991.