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Onondaga County Democrats looking to empower party after encouraging midterms

Tom Magnarelli
/
WRVO News File Photo
Syracuse-area State Assemblywoman Pam Hunter is the chair of the Onondaga County Democratic Committee

Onondaga County Democratic Committee Chair Pam Hunter hopes to unite the local Democratic Party in the wake of Election Day.

An energized progressive movement has been at odds with the party, evidenced by a couple of Democratic primaries earlier this year where the party-backed candidate lost. Hunter said she does not like splitting the party into different tables.

“If you peel that back, what we have that is similar is almost identical,” Hunter said. “Sometimes, it’s tactic and strategy, how we get to those places, but really those common things that bind us together is definitely something I’m trying to capture and work on and move towards in 2019 and 2020.”

Hunter said even though Democrats lost a couple of key races, vote totals were close. She said she is optimistic thanks to a large increase in voter registrations for the midterm election.

“It’s being able to keep people engaged. That’s going to be very key,” Hunter said. “We took the House, so that’s another stopgap measure that we’ll have Jan. 1 that’s going to be able to stop some of the policies that have been disrupting the country for the past two years.”

Ellen produces news reports and features related to events that occur in the greater Syracuse area and throughout Onondaga County. Her reports are heard regularly in regional updates in Morning Edition and All Things Considered.