Council members Republican Russell Bonfiglio and Republican Randy Daversa are both up for reelection this year, facing off against three newcomers Democrat Daniel Gonzalez, Democrat Jeremy Engquist and Republican Michael Zanghi.

For Bonfiglio, he is finishing his first term on the council and involved in politics. He described it as a learning curve, adding that he had a lot to learn but hopes to return to the council to be able to help the citizens of Jamestown more in a second term. Bonfiglio also described himself as a hard worker who will do things he is asked to do almost immediately or if he cannot he will send the request on to someone who can.

Similarly, Daversa is also looking to return to be able to continue to help people.

“I believe that the work I initially set out to do for the city of Jamestown is not finished,” Daversa said. “There are many issues in the city that need a lot of attention such as housing, crime and keeping a financial stable situation for the city.”

Councilman Randy Daversa is looking to be reelected to his current council seat as an At-Large representative. Submitted photo

Both candidates were born and raised in Jamestown and expressed their love for the city. Daversa also raised his two daughters in the city, and described himself as community minded, volunteering in many places such as for Shades of Pink, golf tournaments, midget football, and being a coach or referee for multiple youth sports. He added he likes to purchase most of his household items from within the county or city to keep the money there, and likes to attend ribbon cuttings to support business owners.

When it comes to some of the issues in the city, such as housing, Bonfiglio said he was shocked to learn how bad the housing in the city is.

“There are a lot of good neighborhoods around but we need to get rid of the houses that are dilapidated because it just brings in the drug people and homeless,” Bonfiglio said. “I’m going to push hard this next term to get these houses torn down, because if you solve that problem the homeless problem goes away and the drug problem goes away. So you can do one thing and solve three problems at once, but money is always a question.”

Daversa said for him a lot of the focus is on keeping these neighborhoods safe, such as with neighborhood watch programs that have been implemented in the past and are starting up again in some areas.

“I believe that neighbors should look out for each other, and most of the time they do,” Daversa said.

One thing that Daversa added that he would advocate for is to keep the city code going that has recently been implemented for areas like blight, high grass, unregistered vehicles, and he said he wants to continue his quest to support the Department of Development in taking on these code violations if they are not adhered to.

Financially, both candidates noted that this will be a tough year with the budget with cuts that will need to be made across the board. Daversa noted that in many areas cuts will be difficult in order to be able to keep things like needed equipment to keep employees in the police department and streets division safe. He said while currently looking at a large tax increase for the 2026 budget he hopes the council will be able to hold the line and reduce the increase at least slightly.

Safety wise, both candidates agreed that the city is a mostly safe place to live, work and raise a family, also both taking note of the statewide bail reform which is also contributing to a lot of the crime rates being seen in the city.

“I think it’s a very nice place to raise a family,” Bonfiglio said. “There are other cities that I wouldn’t dare go to. I’ve traveled a lot and seen a lot of things and we’re not unique in our problems. … It’s just a matter of financially if you can solve them.”

Bonfiglio added that he thought the city has a decent reputation and is a good city, even if people like to put it down. He said he has also raised his two kids here. Looking more specifically at the bail reform issue, Bonfiglio said he also feels that New York is not a business friendly state.

“The other thing I’d like to work towards next term is getting rid of the no bail that has caused serious problems in the city and the police department, and every department,” Bonfiglio said. “They get arrested and they get out of jail and they keep getting out of jail, and to me that’s a big issue in New York State.”

Daversa agreed with Bonfiglio in that this issue is a big one that he wants to focus on fixing as well, adding that members of the police department that he has spoken with have expressed a lot of frustration with it as well.

Overall, Daversa said he would encourage people to keep looking out for each other and take care of their communities.

“I encourage people to be community minded and always watch out for each other and if you have any time to volunteer and help anybody in need, I encourage them to do so,” Daversa said. “There are always issues that arise that are brought to the city administration and council that we try our very best to address. I would like to keep working for the citizens of Jamestown because I have their best interests in mind.”