Miles Burnett, a South Side native who announced his candidacy for mayor of Binghamton earlier this month, officially kicked off his campaign on Tuesday.

Burnett, a Democrat, joined dozens of supporters downtown at Atomic Tom’s, a bar and art space. Organizers distributed campaign literature and petitions for his nomination on the party’s primary ballot. Burnett’s friends and family, local business owners and public officials like City Clerk Sarah Dinhofer, City Council President Michael Dundon and Councilmember Kinya Middleton were among those in attendance.

The incumbent mayor, Jared Kraham, a Republican, has yet to announce his campaign for reelection. Burnett is looking become the first Democrat elected as Binghamton’s mayor since Matt Ryan ‘83, who served from 2006 to 2013.

After people ate, mingled and signed petitions, introductory speeches were given by Omar Acosta-Nuñez, a campaign organizer and first-year graduate student pursuing a Master of Public Administration, and Broome County Democratic Chair Karen Beebe. Acosta-Nuñez described the importance of community, energy and momentum in successful campaigns, while Beebe emphasized Burnett’s local connections.

Burnett served as deputy chief of staff to State Sen Lea Webb ‘04 from 2023 to 2024. He also worked as an aide to a former New York City councilman and as executive director of a nonprofit tasked with “advancing small business growth and economic development projects.”

Beebe then introduced Burnett, who took the stage to a thundering round of applause. After thanking his family for their support, he said that local government plays a critical role, especially in light of recent federal developments that threaten “critical protections and resources.”

Turning to his campaign platform, Burnett listed a number of issues — from the housing crisis to public safety — he plans to address as mayor. He advocated expanding access to home ownership while holding “absentee and out-of-town landlords accountable.” He said that increased funding for violence prevention programs and mental health resources were vital to improving community safety and shared his plans for younger Binghamton residents.

“I’m very passionate about expanding our youth services here in the city,” Burnett said. “We need to increase mentorship programs and job training and recreational opportunities for our young people. We want them to stay here. I mean, we have so many people who come to this community, go to Binghamton University or SUNY Broome, and then as soon as they’re done — because they can’t find a place to live or there’s no job opportunities — they’re gone. We need to retain our young people and be investing in the next generation.”

He further pledged to “cut red tape” that harms entrepreneurs and invest in small businesses, urging residents to shop locally in areas like the Downtown Business District.

Michael Kane, a member of activist group Citizen Action of New York who sits on the Binghamton City Democratic Committee, said he approved of Burnett’s promise to reexamine the city’s “blue bag” policy, which requires residents to purchase and dispose of trash in special blue plastic bags. Before the rule was implemented in 1991, property taxes were used to pay a fee for every ton of garbage dropped at the Broome County Landfill. Critics of the bag rule have argued that it passes the cost of trash disposal to individuals like renters, rather than landlords or property owners.

Several local candidates attended the campaign event, including Nick Libous, the son of the late New York State Sen. Tom Libous, a Republican who represented the Binghamton area for more than 20 years. Libous, who changed his party registration several years ago, announced his candidacy for Broome County Clerk earlier in the month. Also in attendance was Christina Charuk, a teacher running for mayor of Johnson City.

Dinner was prepared by Robin Drayton, a local Democrat who regularly caters food for political events and for the unhoused community. Dessert was provided by Carol Grippen, owner of Creative Confections by Carol and member of the Democratic Women of Broome County.

“I think that first you need to focus on the issues that matter to young voters, not just taking their vote for granted and telling them to show up on Election Day,” Burnett told Pipe Dream. “And then I think that once I’m the mayor of Binghamton, it’s keeping young voices involved in my administration, starting a Youth Advisory Board, possibly putting someone on the City Council that is a nonvoting member that represents youth in our community.”

“We have an incredible group of young people living in this community, and we need to be retaining them and making sure that they stay here by having access to good-paying jobs and making sure that there is safe, affordable housing for them to build a future here,” he added.

Editor’s Note (2/27): This article was edited to clarify the positions of the legislative leaders who attended the campaign launch.