This week, the Buffalo News reported that Democrat Bernie Tolbert was prepared to step up his challenge to incumbent Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown, which is good news for those who believe a vibrant campaign season has a salutary effect on both politics and governance.

In the meantime, it is Republican Sergio Rodriguez, rather than Tolbert, who is shouting the loudest for the attention of the city’s voters, issuing press releases every few days on a variety of issues, demonstrating the sort of opportunism that well serves an underdog candidate. In the past week, he has criticized the Brown campaign for deploying a video advertisement that features a uniformed Buffalo Police chief standing on city property with a campaign sign in support of the mayor. The Rodriguez campaign’s assertion that this violates state law may be a bit of a stretch, but it does feel unseemly. Rodriguez followed with a response to the latest FBI crime rate report, which ranks Buffalo the 11th most dangerous city in the country. Rodriguez’s statement reads, in part:

“...Anyone who says Buffalo streets are safer has not spent enough time on Buffalo streets.

“How can we begin to solve a problem when Mayor Brown and Commissioner Derenda won’t even address it.

“We can start by appointing a qualified police commissioner who at the very least meets the minimum requirements we have for our police officers.

“I am prepared to take ownership over the issue of crime. Someone has to.”