It was a victory for the Independence Party that made history in Syracuse. Ben Walsh's mayoral win makes him the second minor-party candidate to become mayor in the city.

So how will this impact political parties in the city?

Grant Reeher, director of the Campbell Public Affairs Institute at Syracuse University, predicts there will be no significant changes to any party structures. Reeher says Walsh's win was a combination of his work ethic at City Hall, his family name and campaign success over other candidates.

"This is one of these cases where all of the pieces came into place. Right? And everything fell into line and he was the right kind of candidate and high quality candidate to take advantage," Reeher said.

The last non-major party candidate elected Syracuse mayor was Louis Will, a Progressive. It was 1913 when the party nicknamed the 'Bull Moose Party' gained popularity through former President Theodore Roosevelt.