Even a last-minute slight by the Onondaga County Democratic Committee could not keep Nicole Watts from securing the county legislature’s 9th District seat.
Watts won a three-way race against independent candidate Kenyata Calloway and Republican Bonnke Sekarore.
She won about 56% of the votes while Sekarore won 37.77%. Calloway received less than 6% of the votes. Watts’ victory came as Democrats flipped the Onondaga County Legislature from red to blue. Democrats now control 10 of the 17 seats in the legislature.
Watts raised more money than Calloway, but the Democratic party over the weekend sent out an email endorsing Calloway — despite Calloway running an independent campaign.
On Saturday, OCDC Chair Max Ruckdeschel sent out an email saying that Calloway was the only candidate endorsed by the OCDC. In spite of the slight, Watts said she planned to caucus with the Democrats when she enters the Legislature in January.
“I think that from the very get go in this race, I was not the candidate that they had selected to endorse. That made this race look really different than if they had chosen me. But I’m hopeful that I have been able to demonstrate to them that next time they get the chance to make the choice, that it will be unanimous,” Watts told Central Current.
Watts will represent the city’s North Side after incumbent Palmer Harvey failed to obtain the required number of ballot signatures to appear on the Democratic Party line in June. Watts, a registered Democrat, ran on the Working Families Party line and an independent “Northside Rising” ballot line. The founder and CEO of Hopeprint, Inc., Watts was previously the chairman of the Refugee Alliance of Greater Syracuse.
Watts said that she is looking forward to participating in legislature committee work to ensure the inflow of investment into the city’s Northside. After the recent turmoil surrounding the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program cuts, Watts said that she anticipates more federal cuts under President Donald Trump’s administration. She hopes the county can help soften the blow for families in Onondaga County.
City Auditor Alex Marion, who has supported Watts’ campaign, said the party needs to put its time and effort into younger, energized candidates like Watts.
Restaurant owner Habiba Boru, 39, has been involved with the Watts campaign. Boru, who came to the United States in 2000 from Ethiopia, has known Watts from the first day since she set foot in the country.
“She was that person to go to. It didn’t matter if she knew the language or not, but she was there,” Boru said. “Nicole is a sister to everybody, and everybody leaned on her.”
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