After a four-year, up-and-down stretch that included the pandemic and the announcement of Micron’s upcoming arrival in Central New York, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon is campaigning against county legislator Bill Kinne for reelection.  

Kinne and McMahon both have years of serving the community under their belt, but differ on the best ways to get things done.  

For McMahon, the reason to run for reelection is simple.  

“Because the job is not done, we’re asking the public for another term,” McMahon said.  

McMahon is reflecting on an eventful term, one that saw Micron select Onondaga County for the site of a massive semiconductor plant.

“Creating economic opportunity for generations of county residents,” he said of the project. “We were the team that helped to bring that here and we are the team working on executing it now, and the job is not done.”

Across town, Kinne, who McMahon notes he has known for years, is preparing to challenge him.  

“I’m extremely proud of my constituent service,” he said. “I get calls from people all over the county and I do my best to help them.”

Kinne is criticizing McMahon’s push for an $85 million aquarium.

“He is out of touch, the people don’t want this,” he said.  

Kinne also criticizes McMahon’s tactics, calling the way he pushes his agenda “offensive,” and accuses him of focusing too much energy on large-scale, wish-list items rather than day-to-day issues.  

“He’s a bullier and a control person,” Kinne said. “I work with people better than he does, and I will cut deals that help everyone in the county, not just certain groups.”  

McMahon disputes this, arguing that he’s done plenty to address the issues. He emphasized that it was his administration that navigated the darkest days of the pandemic while also focusing on investments in education and infrastructure.  

“This is a beautiful village that has taken advantage of our Main Street program,” McMahon said on a walk through the Village of Minoa. “We supported local governments, planning with local businesses. We supported them with façade improvement grants. We need more housing units, so we have our O-CHIP program incentivizing new development.”

While McMahon acknowledges others’ skepticism over both the Micron project and the aquarium, he argues that he is best suited to see them through to the finish line.

Kinne said he supports and encourages growth, but sees room for improvement when it comes to management of that growth and other issues.

“I’d work on housing. We have a terrible housing shortage,” he said. “I’d try to work with both the sheriff and the city police department to try to make the community safer."

Both candidates expressed hope that voters will give them a chance to see their vision through in the Nov. 7 election.