Carl Paladino announces bid for Rep. Chris Collins' seat in Congress

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BUFFALO - Carl Paladino announced Saturday that he was putting his name in the mix for the 27th Congressional District.

This comes after the incumbent, Rep. Chris Collins, R-Clarence, Erie County, was arrested on federal charges Wednesday and halted his re-election campaign Saturday morning.

Paladino, a Buffalo developer, took to Twitter on Saturday afternoon to make the announcement. So did Erie County Comptroller Stefan Mychajliw.

David Bellavia, a decorated Iraq War veteran, co-founder of Vets for Freedom and a radio show host on WBEN-AM (930) in Buffalo also expressed interest via Twitter on Saturday morning. Bellavia lost the GOP primary for the 27th District to Collins in 2012.

Video: Carl Paladino: 'Get ready'

Also in the mix are state Sens. Michael Ranzenhofer and Rob Ortt, Erie County Legislator Lynne Dixon and Assemblymen Ray Walter and Steve Hawley, all of the Buffalo area.

Democrat Nate McMurray, town supervisor of Grand Island, Erie County, and Larry Piegza of the Reform Party already were running for the seat.

More: Chris Collins halts re-election bid; GOP seeks replacement candidate

More: Collins insider trading allegations: Five days in June 2017

Earlier this year, Paladino announced that he would not run for governor to challenge Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the 2018 New York gubernatorial election. He ran for governor in 2010 and was the honorary co-chair of President Donald Trump's New York campaign in 2016,

In 2017, Paladino was removed from the Buffalo school board, which accused him of willfully sharing confidential information about negotiations with the city's teachers union and a pending lawsuit that was discussed during a closed-door meeting. He had faced a barrage of criticism during his time on the board for racist and controversial remarks.

On Sunday afternoon, Mychajliw said on Twitter that he had raised $100,000 in the previous 24 hours. He said he had campaign co-chairmen who are CEOs in Rochester and Buffalo but did not name them.

Raised $100,000 in commitments for my race for Congress in the past 24-hours. We have a strong finance committee in place. Two CEO's from Buffalo and Rochester are co-chairs. This and other topics talked about today on CNN. https://t.co/cGonMzTjhz — Stefan Mychajliw (@StefanMychajliw) August 12, 2018

Also on Sunday, he told CNN that Collins had done the right thing in pulling out of the race.

He is a conservative Republican and wholeheartedly supports President Trump and his policies, Mychajliw said. He said he is pro-life, holds a concealed-carry permit and is a member of the National Rifle Association.

"Make no mistake, if Democrats win the House, they are going to impeach President Trump on Day One," Mychajliw said in emphasizing the importance of the GOP holding on to the seat.

Pointing out that he had won three races in "a very blue county," Mychajliw said he is "a brawler and a fighter."

New York election law spells out a very narrow path of possibility for removing Collins’ name from November’s ballot: death, accepting nomination for a separate office or moving out of state.

If Collins' name is removed, the eight Republican county chairs within the mostly rural district between Buffalo and Rochester will decide who replaces him on the ballot, with Erie County GOP Chair Nick Langworthy having the most influence.

If the GOP fails to remove Collins from the ballot and he were to win, he would still get another term unless he were to resign after his current term ends.

He could be replaced on the ballot up until seven days before the election, said John Conklin, spokesman for the state Board of Elections.

Includes Democrat and Chronicle reporting.