Chris Libonati

3 weeks ago | centralcurrent.org | Chris Libonati

On Thursday, May 29th our newsroom staff will interview candidates running in this year’s Democratic primary for the Syracuse mayoral nomination. The event is free and open to the public, and audience members will also have an opportunity to ask questions of the candidates. This forum is designed to help voters prepare for the Democratic primary election which will be held on June 24th. All candidates who have filed the necessary signatures to earn a ballot line will be invited to attend.

1 month ago | centralcurrent.org | Chris Libonati

This story is a collaboration between New York Focus and Columbia Journalism Investigations, an investigative reporting unit at the Columbia Journalism School. You can find the other stories in this series [here]. Sign up for their newsletter here. The call came one morning last year as Renay Lynch sat alone in her living room, organizing papers from her more than25 years in prison for a memoir she hoped to write. Now Lynch had an ending. “You are fully exonerated,” her lawyer said.

2 months ago | centralcurrent.org | Chris Libonati

Syracuse Democrats designated Pat Hogan as their candidate in the 2025 race for Syracuse mayor. Hogan earned 60% of the committee’s votes while current Deputy Mayor Sharon Owens earned 39%. Jimmy Oliver earned 1%. While Hogan was the committee’s pick for mayor, there is expected to be a primary. Owens plans to challenge Hogan in the primary. Voting will take place in June if she collects enough petition signatures to get on the ballot.

2 months ago | centralcurrent.org | Chris Libonati |Patrick McCarthy |Patrick Mccarthy

Mayor Ben Walsh called for change from Syracuse Housing Authority leadership following a Thursday meeting of the SHA’s Board of Commissioners. While Walsh was adamant Executive Director Bill Simmons’ leadership needed to be reviewed, he stopped short of calling on SHA’s board to get rid of Simmons. That callout may have fallen on unhearing ears. When reporters told Simmons that Walsh said he had no confidence in SHA’s leadership, Simmons dismissed the comment.

2 months ago | centralcurrent.org | Chris Libonati

City Republicans rejected Tuesday night Tim Rudd’s bid for the party’s designation in this year’s mayoral race. Party members interviewed Rudd on Tuesday as part of the normal vetting process for candidates running in 2025 races. Kevin Ryan, the chair of the Republican party’s city committee, said they will make sure Rudd does not run on the Republican ballot line. “There’s no appetite for Tim Rudd running for mayor as a Republican,” Ryan said.