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On Election Day, three contests in New York will directly affect the Syracuse area, including the 48th state senate district of New York, the Syracuse Common Council’s 5th district and a statewide proposition.

Senate District 48

Rachel May (D-48) won the seat for New York state’s 48th senate district. As of 11:07 p.m. Tuesday, she won 54% of the vote, syracuse.com reported.

May currently chairs the senate committees on aging and rural resources and will be serving for her third term.

May faced off against Republican candidate Julie Abbott, who she held similar views with on environmental protection and substance abuse. Abbott notably broke from her party on several issues, including gun control, and said she recognizes the need for abortion in some circumstances.

In central New York, May has worked on increasing transportation access from Syracuse to Clay for the new Micron plant, while Abbott has prioritized increasing funding for schools and mental health services.

Both May and Abbott also share connections to Syracuse University. Abbott is an SU alumna and May worked as a director of sustainability education at SU for 15 years.

“Thank you, CNY, for your support and for believing in my campaign to preserve our state’s fresh water, protect women’s reproductive healthcare, provide quality education for all, continue the region’s economic successes, ensure fair pay for home care workers and many other issues I’’ll be advocating for in the upcoming session,” May wrote in a tweet.

Syracuse Common Council

Jimmy Monto won the seat for the fifth district of Syracuse on the Common Council, syracuse.com reported. As of 11:52 p.m., Monto has 74% percent of the vote with 100% percent of in-person votes reported, according to the Onondaga County Board of Elections.

Monto was appointed to fill former Councilor Joe Driscoll’s empty seat in August and will now serve until the end of 2023, when the city’s new district boundaries will go into effect. He is the first openly LGBTQ person to serve on the council.

Carroll campaigned against Monto by highlighting Monto’s past criminal record. In 2012, Monto pleaded guilty to falsifying business records when he worked for the Syracuse City School District.

The fifth district currently encompasses the Eastwood neighborhood, where Monto grew up, in addition to Salt Springs, Scottholm, Westcott, Near Eastside and Meadowbrook. With the changed districts, the fifth district will include Eastwood, Salt Springs, Near Eastside, Sedgwick and Lincoln Park.

State Ballot Initiative

New York state also passed a ballot proposal, which will initiate significant financial dedication to environmental action, in Tuesday’s election, Insider reported.

The proposal, entitled the Clean Water, Clean Air, and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act of 2022, will authorize the creation of state debt and sale of state bonds in an amount of $4.2 billion.

The money will be apportioned to flood restoration and risk reduction, land conservation and recreation, water quality improvement, infrastructure improvements and overall climate change mitigation, according to the New York State Board of Elections.

Published on November 8, 2022 at 11:51 pm

Contact Stephanie: spwright@syr.edu