The leaders of Onondaga County’s two main political parties see an opportunity presented by President Joe Biden’s bid for reelection. The announcement this week by the Democrat and Syracuse University alumnus changes the dynamic at this very early stage in the 2024 presidential race.
Most Democrats are pleased to see Biden seek a second term. Chair of the Onondaga County Democratic Committee Max Ruckdeschel said there’s a lot of enthusiasm among party faithful.
“He has visited multiple times, both for private functions, and very publicly with the Micron announcement," Ruckdeschel said. "He has done a lot of things that have helped Central New York. And I think people who are Democrats locally, are excited to try and see what he would be able to accomplish with four more years.”
Ruckdeschel said he hasn’t heard of any serious contender for the Democratic nomination other than the president, but that anything can happen.
Meanwhile, the chair of Onondaga County Republican Committee, Benedicte Doran said Biden’s campaign slogan “finish the job” is concerning.
“If Americans let Biden finish the job, we will see inflation continuing to run rampant, crime is on the rise on the state and local level, on the national level," Doran said.
He said this, plus Lee Zeldin’s close race against Gov. Kathy Hochul, could translate to more success for a GOP presidential candidate here and across New York. But just who that will be is still up in the air. Doran said there are strong candidates interested in running, beyond the big names who have already declared, like former President Donald Trump and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, also the previous governor of South Carolina.
“We have Ron DeSantis, you have...Tim Scott, others— I think we're going to see a ton of others jumping into the race," Doran said. "And we will just see what, how things unfold. It's very early in the season. And I think there's a lot of a lot can happen between now and a year from now.”
But Ruckdeschel with the Democratic committee says there’s little appetite for Trump in the region.
“Trumpism is not popular in Onondaga County in 2020. Joe Biden beat Donald Trump by 20 percentage points in Onondaga County," he said.
Prior to the 2024 presidential election, local and county offices are on the ballot for this year. The primary election for those races is in June.
