By JAMES FINK
jfink@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1611

Erie County Comptroller Mark Poloncarz pulled off the second major Democratic Party upset in the past six months as he ousted incumbent Chris Collins, his Republican challenger, in a bitter campaign for county executive.

Poloncarz, with 84 percent of the votes tabulated just after midnight, had 99,206 votes (53 percent) to Collins' 86,555 (47 percent).

Collins conceded the race but did not personally call the county executive-elect.

Poloncarz came from blue-collar roots in Lackawanna and worked his way through law school. He will be inaugurated Jan. 1.

"We can have differences on issues, and I will always give credit to someone willing to stand up in the fray, willing to take a shot," he told a raucous crowd at the downtown Adam's Mark Hotel.

The victory comes after a Collins-backed candidate, state Sen. Jane Corwin, a Republican, lost to then-Erie County Clerk Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, in a special election in May for Rep. Chris Lee's former congressional seat. Lee's seat is a heavily Republican district.

Poloncarz was considered a long shot when he entered the race in the spring. His message of returning previously cut county services and allocations resonated with voters, along with his working-class background.

Polls last month showed the gap between the candidates narrowing until they were statistically tied last week.

Poloncarz received major backing from many labor unions and high-profile candidates including Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Sen. Charles Schumer and Rep. Brian Higgins.

"This election is about one thing: change," Cuomo said during a rally Nov. 4 in Amherst. "Mark Poloncarz gets it. He says 'I believe in government.' "

Collins becomes the first Erie County executive to hold the position for a single four-year term. It also returns the politically strong post to the Democratic Party for the first time since 2000.

At Republican Party headquarters, it was a quiet scene with a tinge of bitterness in the air.

"I just don't think Chris was able to fully get his message out," said John Mills, an Orchard Park businessman who is also Republican Minority Caucus chair of the county Legislature. "Poloncarz was able to get all the negatives out."

Former National Fuel Gas Co. Chairman and current ECIDA Chairman Phil Ackerman, a Collins confidante, said he felt the voters didn't appreciate Collins' no-nonsense, businesslike approach to running the $1 billion-a-year county government.

"The loss is probably a symbol that the majority of voters still want handouts," Ackerman said.

Collins, meanwhile, was gracious in defeat, saying he is proud of the fiscal stability he brought to Erie County.

"It is in better shape today than it was four years ago. It was a journey. The public has spoken; we accept that. This is a democracy," he said.

He owns and operates seven local businesses and others outside the region. He said he will remain a Western New York resident but has no plans to re-enter politics.

"I'm going back to the private sector," he said. "I know how to create jobs."