The Democratic side of the aisle at the Onondaga County Legislature will look quite different when lawmakers return to chambers next month. There will be four new faces among the six Democrats after the current lawmakers decided not to seek re-election. Bill Kinne, Linda Ervin, Peggy Chase, and Mary Kuhn attended their final session this week. Democrats are in the minority, so they often struggled to get Republicans to go along with their priorities. Peggy Chase says as a retired nurse, she advocated relentlessly for health and social services for constituents in Syracuse-based district.
“I wanted to make sure that the people in the city were getting a fair shake on the things that they needed," Chase said. "To a degree, the resources are still there and people are still going to be able to apply for them. But I feel like there could have been a lot more done.”
Chase says her constituents also haven't fully benefitted from the county's efforts to improve housing and employment.
Legislator Mary Kuhn focused on engaging constituents in county government.
“I think one of the things that I campaigned on was issues of transparency, the getting more constituent involvement," Kuhn said. "I don't know how successful I was at that, but I do know that I did a lot regarding giving information out about what has happened, inviting people to participate. And one of those things was live streaming of our sessions.”
Kuhn says she began that effort when pandemic forced nearly all meetings to be held virtually and residents had little access to the legislature’s business.
Legislator Linda Ervin focused her efforts on diversity and inclusion in county government among employees and residents. She's one of two African-Americans on the legislature.
“Making sure that everyone has a chance to participate in our resources and our government and construction projects and have a seat at the table," Ervin said. "I think to some degree, I've been successful with that, but a lot more certainly needs to be done.”
Ervin says she's pleased with the addition of a diversity office led by former legislator Monica Williams, and that more minorities are now working in county government.
Legislator Bill Kinne is wrapping up his latest stint on the legislature. He ran unsuccessfully for county executive this year.
“I've had the blessing of working with some wonderful people, including these three ladies here," Kinne said referring to Chase, Ervin, and Kuhn. "But I quickly learned that unless you play the game, you're not going to get anything done. And I don't believe in playing the game because I think the voters should be represented fairly.”
Kinne is widely known for his commitment to constituent service during his 24 non-consecutive years on the legislature.
All four of the lawmakers expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve their constituents, but frustration working within county government. They'll be replaced with fellow Democrats who were elected in November.
