Chad Ryan won the Democratic primary for the Onondaga County Legislature’s 8th District seat.
He had won 57.5% of the vote, according to unofficial election results.
He will be the Democratic nominee and will likely face Brandon Camperlino in November’s general election race for the district.
After winning on Tuesday night, Ryan said he was “fortunate in chairing” the county legislature’s facilities committee, which has put him at the forefront of fights over the county’s aquarium project and over the county’s treatment of Friends of the Zoo.
Ryan beat Tammy Honeywell, who he faced in the 2025 primary for the same seat. Honeywell is a union leader. She ran as a member of an “affordability slate” that included Legislator Maurice “Mo” Brown and legislature candidate Jo Bennett. Honeywell had the backing of the Democratic Socialists of America.
Ryan is a funeral director. He was previously a Syracuse Common Council member but took a break from politics in 2019.
Ryan did not take the competition for granted, he said, but he was confident in his chances of winning the race.
He credited his win to voter confidence in the new Democratic majority’s work in the legislature so far in 2026.
While Honeywell lost, Bennett beat Kinne in the Democratic primary and Brown led entrenched incumbent Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli in the race for the New York State Assembly’s 129th District.
Honeywell said that she was grateful that the Democratic Socialists of America had seen some wins and “started something wonderful.”
She said conversations with constituents had highlighted that affordability is a big issue, and that people were frustrated with the county executive’s spending. She said it emphasized the need to hold local government accountable.
“I’m not going anywhere,” said Honeywell. “Win or lose, our community’s winning because we’re starting something great.”
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