A saxophone-playing senator is still bringing music to Syracuse after 16 years in office. Republican John DeFrancisco is running for his ninth term as state senator in the 50th District this November. As of late April, DeFrancisco is unopposed for re-election. Shelly Schwartz of Democracywise tells us how the arts have gotten a boost during his time as state senator.
Republican Senator John DeFrancisco’s love of jazz is benefiting music and arts programs in Central New York. Last year, Senator DeFrancisco won nearly half a million dollars in state funds for music-related programs here. Larry Luttinger is the executive director of the Central New York Jazz Arts Foundation. Luttinger’s foundation received a $75,000 state grant last year, thanks to DeFrancisco. The grant paid for concerts and outdoor festivals in downtown Syracuse. Luttinger says music is more than just a hobby for the senator—it’s a priority.
[“He is single-handedly responsible for reviving downtown Syracuse’s culture,” Larry Luttinger, executive director of Central New York Jazz Arts Foundation.]
The Learning Place in Syracuse was able to offer a music literacy program for kids last summer with the help of a state grant won by Senator DeFrancisco. The Learning Place provides literacy classes for adults and children. Linda Green is the director. Green says it costs about $500 to run the children’s summer programs. Senator DeFrancisco secured $3,000 from the state—six times the amount of Green’s request—to fund the music literacy program. Green says the program inspired many children to take up a musical instrument.
[“There are so many talents out there that I think if we can expose children to that, I think they find value. It helps with their self-esteem and can be an encouragement to their learning process,” Linda Green, director of The Learning Place.]
Senator DeFrancisco will run for the 50th District state Senate seat for a ninth term this November. The 50th District encompasses the southern and western parts of Onondaga County including Skaneateles, Pompey, Van Buren and the western half of Syracuse.
DeFrancisco will try to help Republicans keep the majority in the state Senate. Republicans have a narrow advantage of 32 to 30 seats over the Democrats. As of now, no Democrat has stepped up to challenge DeFrancisco for the 50th District seat. A spokesperson for the Onondaga County Democratic Committee says the party doesn’t don’t expect to have a challenger by the May 15 deadline. Political science professor Thomas Raven of Syracuse University says it would be nearly impossible for the Democrats to defeat Senator DeFrancisco.
[“You’d be swimming against the stream if you’d be challenging him as an incumbent,” Thomas Raven, political science professor of Syracuse University.]
Raven says voter registration in the 50th District explains why it’s been easy for DeFrancisco to win every election since 1992 by wide margins.
According to the New York State Board of Elections, registered Republicans in the 50th District outnumber Democrats by 8,000.
Carole Marsh is the supervisor of Pompey. She says Senator DeFrancisco is able to cross party lines to connect with constituents. She says he’s very visible in the district and easy to talk to.
[“He’s very accessible. That’s what the public really wants. They want people that they can talk to,” Carole Marsh, supervisor of Pompey.]
For his part, DeFrancisco also stakes a claim to a successful track record as a legislator. Since the start of 2007, for example, Senator DeFrancisco has been the prime sponsor for 225 bills. That’s according to Project Sunlight. It is a Web site created in 2007 by New York’s attorney general to allow the public to track the work of New York assemblymen and senators. Of the 225 bills DeFrancisco has brought to the Senate floor, 30 have been passed into law. Nearly 200 are pending further revisions or have died.
DeFrancisco’s office says the senator is most proud of the Bill Leaf-Brandi Woods law. Bill Leaf was a Syracuse TV news reporter. Brandi Woods was a 15-year-old from Memphis, New York. Both were killed by drunk drivers who had a history of drunk-driving offenses. DeFrancisco teamed up with Democrat Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli to introduce a bill to increase penalties for repeat DUI offenders. The bill was signed into law in June 2006.
Among other accomplishments throughout his 16 years in office, Senator DeFrancisco has:
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Helped keep open the Hutchings Psychiatric Center in Syracuse when it was scheduled to shut down.
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Established Casey’s Place—the first care facility in Onondaga County for children with severe disabilities.
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And fought to have built in Syracuse the New York State Umbilical Cord Blood Bank for stem cell research. The umbilical cord blood bank will provide a space for cancer research without the controversial use of embryos. The decision to build the umbilical cord blood bank in Syracuse became official in November 2006. A location for the building has not yet been determined.
Deanna Cohen is the chief of staff for Senator DeFrancisco. Cohen says bringing the umbilical cord blood bank to Syracuse is a day the senator looks forward to.
[“It’s going to be an amazing opportunity locally for not only economic development but also the saving of lives,” Deanna Cohen, chief of staff for Senator DeFrancisco.]
Before his career in the state Senate, Senator DeFrancisco served on the Syracuse Common Council for 11 years as a councilor-at-large and later as council president. He was assistant district attorney in Onondaga County from 1975 to 1977 before starting his own practice—the DeFrancisco Law Firm in Syracuse. Politics runs in the family. The senator’s son, Jeff, served on the Common Council for four years.
Senator DeFrancisco has lived in Syracuse his whole life. He graduated from Syracuse University in 1968 with a degree in engineering. During his time at SU, DeFrancisco was captain of the varsity baseball team. He left Central New York to attend law school at Duke University. Senator DeFrancisco and his wife Linda have three children and five grandchildren. They all live in Syracuse.
In his spare time, Senator DeFrancisco enjoys reading and playing the saxophone. He started playing the saxophone less than 10 years ago.
Larry Luttinger of the Central New York Jazz Arts Foundation has coached Senator DeFrancisco on the sax and accompanied him at a public performance. Luttinger says performing with DeFrancisco was an honor.
He’s grateful to have a senator in office who appreciates the arts.
[“He understands the value of these presentations and the life and personality that they give to our city and his district,” Larry Luttinger, executive director of Central New York Jazz Arts Foundation.]
The election is November 4.
Reporting for Democracywise, I’m Shelly Schwartz
(Shelly Schwartz is a senior broadcast journalism major.)
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