Ralph M. Mohr
OfficeRepublican Commissioner of Elections for Erie County, New York
Term startJanuary 1, 1993
PredecessorPhilip D. Smolinski
Office 1Member of the Erie County Legislature from the 17th district
Term start 11983
Term end 11992
Predecessor 1Bill Paxon
Successor 1Dale W. Larson
PartyRepublican
Alma materUniversity at Buffalo School of Law (JD)
OccupationAttorney, election official

Ralph M. Mohr is an American attorney, election official, and former politician from Lancaster, New York. A Republican, he served as a member of the Erie County Legislature from the 17th district from 1983 to 1992, and has served as Erie County's Republican commissioner of elections since 1993.[1][2] He has also been active in national Republican politics, including service as an alternate delegate candidate on Rudy Giuliani's 2008 delegate slate in New York and as a delegate pledged to Donald Trump at the 2016 Republican National Convention.[3][4]

Mohr is an attorney based in Lancaster, New York. According to Martindale-Hubbell, he earned a J.D. from the State University of New York Law School at Buffalo and was admitted to the New York bar in 1980.[5]

Political career

Mohr represented the 17th district in the Erie County Legislature from 1983 to 1992.[1] In November 1992, The Buffalo News reported that he would resign effective January 1, 1993 to accept an elections post.[2]

Mohr was formally reappointed as Erie County's Republican commissioner of elections for four-year terms beginning in 1997, 2001, 2009, 2013, 2017, 2021, and 2025.[6][7][8][9][10][11]

National Republican politics

In 2008, Mohr appeared on Giuliani's New York delegate slate as an alternate delegate from the 26th congressional district.[3] In 2016, he was listed as a delegate from the 27th congressional district pledged to Trump at the Republican National Convention.[4]

Litigation and controversies

In 2004 and 2005, Mohr and Democratic elections commissioner Laurence F. Adamczyk joined other petitioners in challenging an Erie County budget provision that terminated four Republican senior election clerk positions at the Board of Elections. In 2006, the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court affirmed a lower-court ruling that the provision conflicted with the New York Constitution and Election Law § 3-300.[12]

In 2011, Mohr filed suit in federal court over Erie County's failure to adopt a county legislative reapportionment plan after the 2010 census. Judge William M. Skretny later imposed an 11-district plan and adjusted ballot-access rules for the 2011 election.[13]

In 2023, just before designating-petition circulation was to begin, Mohr asked federal court to redraw Erie County legislative district lines. Judge Lawrence J. Vilardo denied Mohr's request for a preliminary injunction, ruling that he had not shown standing on his federal claims.[14]

Political blogger Ken Kruly later criticized Mohr for refusing to certify the June 2023 primary results while litigation over the legislative districts was still pending.[15]

Personal life

Mohr lives in Lancaster, New York, and has maintained a law office on Broadway in the town.[5][11]

References

  1. ^ "Previous Serving Legislators". Erie County Legislature. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  2. ^ "MOHR TO RESIGN JAN. 1 TO ACCEPT ELECTIONS POST". The Buffalo News. November 23, 1992. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  3. ^ "Giuliani Campaign Press Release - Rudy Giuliani Releases New York State Delegates Slate". The American Presidency Project. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  4. ^ "New York Delegates to the 2016 Republican National Convention". P2016. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  5. ^ "Ralph Markus Mohr Profile". Martindale-Hubbell. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  6. ^ "Meeting 20, October 5, 2000". Erie County Legislature. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  7. ^ "Meeting 21, October 23, 2008". Erie County Legislature. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  8. ^ "Intro. 18-1 (2012), Appointment of Commissioners of Elections". Erie County Legislature. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  9. ^ "Meeting 19, October 6, 2016". Erie County Legislature. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  10. ^ "Meeting 18, October 8, 2020". Erie County Legislature. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  11. ^ "Session Minutes, October 10, 2024". Erie County Legislature. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  12. ^ "Matter of Ralph M. Mohr v Joel A. Giambra". Justia. March 17, 2006. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  13. ^ "Mohr v. Erie County Legislature". CaseMine. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  14. ^ "Mohr v. Erie County Legislature et al, No. 1:2023cv00039 - Document 20 (W.D.N.Y. 2023)". Justia. February 27, 2023. Retrieved April 19, 2026.
  15. ^ Kruly, Ken (September 27, 2023). "The Ralph Mohr Board of Elections". Politics and Other Stuff. Retrieved April 19, 2026.