The future of Syracuse depends on its children and their safety, say some candidates in this year’s Councilor-at-Large race.
For the Nov. 5 election, two of four councilor-at-large seats in the Syracuse Common Council are open and contested. The candidates are Democrats Pamela Hunter and incumbent Jean Kessner, Republican Ernest Morrow and Conservative Party candidate Randy Potter.
The Common Council is the governing body of Syracuse, with a president, four Councilors-at-Large and five district councilors. A Councilor-at-Large represents the entire city of Syracuse and deals with citywide issues. The position includes has a three-year term and $23,000 yearly salary.
For Democrats, the Councilor-at-Large race was marked by early tension when Mayor Stephanie Miner supported two Democratic challengers — Hunter and Jeff Wright, a retired city employee — against incumbents Kessner and Lance Denno. In the Sept. 10 primary, Kessner and Hunter won the Democratic nominations to run against Republican Morrow and Conservative Party candidate Potter.
Democrats own Syracuse politics. The party’s registered voters are nearly triple the number of Republicans. Of the city’s 70,696 registered voters, 38,799 — or 54 percent — are Democrats; 11,362 — or 16 percent — are Republicans; and 15,924 — or 22 percent — are unaffiliated with a political party. The Conservative Party has less than 1 percent, with 670 registered voters.
Here’s a rundown of who’s who in this year’s Councilor-at-Large race:
Pamela Hunter (Democrat)
Hunter comes from a military and legislative background. She served in the U.S. Army for three years and later worked for a non-profit that successfully lobbied for legislation to help college students pay for school.
Now, as a Syracuse resident, she is the regional director for epilepsy services at Epilepsy-PRALID, a local nonprofit that advocates for people with developmental disabilities. “Human services is kind of ingrained in me,” she said.
In February 2011, Mayor Miner appointed Hunter to fill a Councilor-at-Large seat vacated by Democrat Bill Ryan, who resigned to take a job as the city’s director of administration. However, she lost in an election bid for a full term to Democrat Helen Hudson, an activist against gun violence. Hudson won the November 2011 general election for Councilor-at-Large.
Going into the 2013 election, her platform centers on quality-of-life issues, Hunter said. Combating crime is one those issues. Residents tell her, she said, that they fear increases in robberies and burglaries.
“Really, it takes a community to deter this kind of crime,” Hunter said, “to engage the community to be better civic partners related to keeping the community faith.”
Hunter also has a child in the Syracuse school system and describes herself as a fierce advocate for education. Early childhood education is crucial, she said, because of a strong correlation between full-day pre-kindergarten and kids remaining in school later on.
Jean Kessner (incumbent, Democrat)
Kessner was a reporter for WIXT-TV – now WSYR NewsChannel 9 – from 1979 to 2005. She credits her experience as a journalist with helping her learn more about the city of Syracuse and finding ways to improve it.
Entering this year’s election, Kessner said, she plans to continue combating crime. The neighborhoods need more police presence — officers who know their communities by living in the city, she said.
“We need to look for money and get police officers,” Kessner said, “and find a way through incentives to get officers to live in cities.”
Kessner also supports the creation of full-day pre-kindergarten. It is important for children to stay in school, she said, as many don’t have a strong home life to help them.
While Councilors-at-Large typically don’t run with a campaign slogan, Kessner said she has already decided on hers: “Syracuse Rising.”
“We deserve, for a lot of reasons,” Kessner said, “to have the best days in front of us.”
Ernest Morrow (Republican)
(Editor’s note: The information about Morrow has been updated from an earlier version.)
Ernest Morrow says his core belief is in God.
He is a pastor for Abundant Life — one of the largest churches in Central New York.
Morrow had sought the Republican ballot line, but his candidacy was tossed out when the GOP sued to have petition signatures invalidated for Morrow, would-be mayoral candidate Ian Hunter and Randy Potter. In August, the party asked Morrow to be its Councilor-at-Large candidate.
With little political experience, Morrow said, he accepted his party’s request because of the degeneration he’s seen in the city. This was his opportunity to have a positive effect on Syracuse, he said.
His main concern, he said, is crime. He has close relationships with many Syracuse police officers, he said. He calls for more funding for police and the fire department.
Another institution that should improve its presence, he said, is the church.
“Being a Christian,” he said. “I’d like to see the church do a better job serving and breaking down the barriers and giving people an alternative other than crime.” He wants to see peace in politics, he said.
“I think the core thing,” he said, “is bringing truth and justice back to politics and make it a decent thing.”
Randy Potter (Conservative)
Potter, who was also caught up in the GOP’s lawsuit against Hunter, is running for the position on the Conservative ticket. Potter did not respond to several interview requests.
(Maddy Berner is a senior majoring in newspaper and online journalism and Spanish.)
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