Early voting begins Saturday in Syracuse and Onondaga County for the June 27 primary.
On the Democratic side, all but one of the primaries are for city offices, including Auditor, Common Council and Commissioner of Education. The exception is the District 15 County Legislature seat, which covers the city’s western, southern and eastern edges.
Democratic Committee Chair Max Ruckdeschel says different factors are driving the primary races.
“A combination of redistricting and incumbents that didn't run for reelection, it did drive some extra interest in people wanting to run for local offices this year in the city of Syracuse," Ruckdeschel said. "Even the County Legislature primary that we have is a city of Syracuse-based district.”
That district is currently represented by Bill Kinne, who’s running for County Executive.
On the Council, the redrawn first and third districts forced out the incumbents, who decided to run for Councilor-At-Large.
Ruckdeschel says redistricting on the county level has limited the number of competitive seats.
“There are five or six seats that are very Democratic, which [Republicans] drew, that the Republicans aren't even putting candidates up against," Ruckdeschel said. "Similarly, we had a difficult time finding candidates to run in areas that [Republicans] drew, that would just be impossible for a Democrat to win. That's by design. They drew it that way. We're still challenging that redistricting in court. It's dragging on.”
In the lawsuit, filed last August, Democrats claim the districts are heavily gerrymandered in favor of preserving Republican seats. Ruckdeschel says the lawsuit filed would had to have been resolved by January in order to redraw the districts in time for this year’s election. He says Republicans have dragged out the process to keep the lines in place.
WAER News also caught up with the chair of the County’s Republican Committee, which will be featured in a separate story.
Here's a list of the candidates running in all Onondaga County primaries. The final day to vote is June 27.
Below is a list of early voting times and locations:
2023 ONONDAGA COUNTY EARLY VOTING SITES FOR JUNE 27, 2023 PRIMARY ELECTION
ARMOND MAGNARELLI COMMUNITY CENTER AT MCCHESNEY PARK
2300 Grant Boulevard, Syracuse NY 13208
BEAUCHAMP BRANCH LIBRARY
2111 South Salina Street, Syracuse, NY 13205
LAFAYETTE FIRE STATION #1 (Rear Entrance)
2444 Route 11 South, LaFayette NY 13084
SALINA TOWN HALL
201 School Rd, Liverpool, NY 13088
SYRACUSE COMMUNITY CONNECTION (SOUTHWEST COMMUNITY CENTER)
401-425 South Avenue, Syracuse NY 13204
Every voter within Onondaga County will be able to vote at any Early Voting Site.
2023 EARLY VOTING DATES & TIMES FOR THE JUNE 27, 2023 PRIMARY ELECTION AT THE ABOVE
LOCATIONS
Saturday, June 17, 2023: 9:00AM – 5:00PM
Sunday, June 18, 2023: 9:00AM – 5:00PM
Monday, June 19, 2023: 10:00AM – 6:00PM
Tuesday, June 20, 2023: 10:00AM – 6:00PM
Wednesday, June 21, 2023: 12:00PM – 8:00PM
Thursday, June 22, 2023: 12:00PM – 8:00PM
Friday, June 23, 2023: 10:00AM – 6:00 PM
Saturday, June 24, 2023: 9:00AM – 5:00 PM
Sunday, June 25, 2023: 9:00AM – 5:00 PM
