Barbara Buffaloe held on to her job as Columbia’s mayor Tuesday night.
Buffaloe will serve a second three-year term. She defeated Blair Murphy, Tanya Heath and write-in candidate Lucio Bitoy IV.
“For me, it really helped reinforce the message that we heard on the doors and in the forums, which is that the momentum we’ve seen over the last three years, we want it to continue,” Buffaloe said. “But I was a little bit nervous because there was a lot of money in this campaign, which is unprecedented.”
She won the mayoral election with the unofficial results of 14,073 votes with all precincts reporting.
About 25% of registered Boone County voters cast their ballots in the 2025 municipal election.
Buffaloe was first elected as mayor in 2022. For this campaign, she ran on a platform of continuing the work she started in her first term. She campaigned on improving public safety and bolstering sustainability initiatives. Buffaloe also flexed her previous experience as mayor and working for the city.
Fear of crime in Columbia drove the election cycle. Buffaloe prioritized safety in her campaign, and during her first term, she approved the new in-house Columbia Police Department academy and police pay increases.
She also called for the establishment of the city’s Office of Violence Prevention, which recently named its first administrator.
“We know there’s still more work to be done,” Buffaloe said. “Especially with what’s happening at the federal level. We know local government is more important than ever.”
One of Buffaloe’s opponents raised significantly more money and spent more this election cycle. As of March 31, Murphy brought in over a quarter million dollars, including $25,000 from a mysterious political action committee linked to the business and real estate community. Buffaloe raised roughly $70,000, according to previous Missourian reporting.
During her watch party Tuesday, Buffaloe criticized the number of funds that flowed into the campaigns this election.
“It creates the idea that there’s a barrier that you can’t run for this unless you have rich friends,” Buffaloe said.
Buffaloe held her campaign’s watch party at Ozark Mountain Biscuit & Bar on Tuesday night. As she awaited the election results, she was surrounded by supporters, including fellow council members Roy Lovelady and Valerie Carroll.
Across town, Murphy held a watch party at D Rowe’s. His watch party drew about 200 attendees, including MU football coach Eli Drinkwitz and MU athletic director Laird Veatch. Murphy received 10,663 votes, 3,410 fewer than Buffaloe, according to the unofficial results.
While awaiting the final count, Murphy said he felt “phenomenal.”
“We did it the right way,” Murphy said. “We didn’t go negative. We stayed healthy and positive, and all the support I’ve had — how could you not feel good right now?”
During his concession speech, Murphy said he believed the campaign did everything possible.
“The people came out and spoke,” Murphy said. “And unfortunately, they just had a few more than all of you great people.”
He also said he would retire from politics.
Heath held her watch party at Dickey’s Barbecue Pit. She lost the race with 779 votes, according to the unofficial results.
“I have learned a lot, and I definitely plan to use everything I have learned to help Columbia in any way possible,” Heath said. “Because we have a lot of things that we need to do, and we need to have people that are willing to talk to all wards and explain things in a way that makes a difference to everyone.”
Bitoy did not hold an election watch party Tuesday. He did not respond to the Missourian for comment.
When Columbia’s next mayor was announced, Buffaloe emphasized the importance of local government and supporting community.
“Columbia is about caring for one another,” Buffaloe said in a speech after she won. “It’s about focusing on the vibrancy of our community and our progressive nature and how we protect one another. Right now, at the state and federal level, we’re seeing impacts on our vulnerable populations, and that’s not who we are. We care about one another. We are going to show up, and we’re going to continue to support one another.”
Alec Martirez contributed to this article.
