Rachel May retains seat in NY’s 48th Senate District

Syracuse, N.Y. — Incumbent Democrat Rachel May defeated Republican challenger Caleb Slater in the race to represent the 48th Senate District in the New York state Legislature, according to preliminary election results.
May won 55% of the vote to Slater‘s 40%. May won the Onondaga County portion of the district by 14%, overwhelming Slater’s 8-point lead in Cayuga County, where he lived and attended college.
Addressing the crowd at the Onondaga County Democratic Committee party at Harvey’s Garden in Syracuse, May said she was grateful to the voters in the 48th District “for trusting me again to be your senator.”
After thanking her campaign staff and Senate staff, May brought up her 26-year-old child, Jude, before the crowd and spoke with a choked-up voice.
“I want you to know I do all of this for you, and you are the light of my heart,” May said. “We are trying to give you a better future. That is the No. 1 thing we’re doing.”
May spoke about the reforms the Legislature has made in the voting system since she first ran, including early voting, no-excuse voting by mail, easier registration rules and public campaign financing.
May also addressed the tight presidential race. “Like all of you, I’m very nervous about the federal election,” she said. “I pledge to you I will continue fighting, whatever the outcome, for a better New York and a better future for our kids.”
Slater could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.
The 2024 election election matchup between Democratic incumbent May and GOP challenger Slater began after a bitterly fought Republican primary last spring. In that race, Slater and Fanny Villarreal battled over which candidate was more conservative in terms of loyalty to former President Donald Trump and stances on issues such abortion rights, gun control and immigration.
After winning the primary, Slater largely avoided those issues during the general election campaign. It was a tactic May and the state Democratic Senate Campaign Committee brought attention to, arguing that he was posing as a centrist when his true views were more extreme. Slater argued that May was the extremist, saying she was part of the Albany Democratic machine that rejects bipartisan governing.
May, 67, was seeking her fourth two-year term. She came to Syracuse from out of state in 1998 to pursue a master’s degree at SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry and eventually worked as an administrator in environmental sustainability education at Syracuse University. She successfully challenged incumbent Democrat David Valesky in a primary in 2018 and went on to win the first of three general elections.
Slater, 28, was making his first run for elected office. He grew up in low-income housing in the Southern Tier, then moved to Auburn to attend Cayuga Community College. He then earned a bachelor’s degree at Ithaca College and worked various jobs in sales and real estate. After working for a political action committee supporting a North Carolina U.S. senator’s campaign in the fall of 2022, Slater moved to Onondaga County and launched a communications consulting firm with clients in real estate and politics.
The candidates disagreed on a host of issues, but the most stark contrast may have been regarding juvenile crime. While Slater was adamant about overturning a law passed in 2017 that raised the age of criminal responsiblity from 16 to 18 in New York state, May said the law itself has not been used correctly. Slater said children as young as 13 should be incarcerated in some circumstances, a position May firmly rejected.
May had a considerable fundraising and spending edge.
From July through Oct. 21, May raised $531,059 and spent $677,154, according to campaign finance disclosures. Slater in the same time period raised $306,241 and spent $277,426.
A big separator for the campaigns was funding from their state party. While the SDCC poured nearly $240,000 into May’s campaign, Slater received no support from the state Republican committee.
Both candidates also tapped into the state’s new public campaign finance program, which was available to state Legislature candidates for the first time this year. The program matches donations of up to $250 by individuals who live in the district. Slater received $238,094 in matching funds while May collected $387,661.
The 48th Senate District encompasses Syracuse and Onondaga County towns to the south and west of the city, along with all of Cayuga County. As of Nov. 1, Democrats have 83,541 enrolled voters compared while Republicans have 58,010. There are also 61,790 voters not registered to any party.
Despite the decisive enrollment edge, May in 2022 received just 50% of the total vote. Her two opponents vote totals, Republican Julie Abbott at 43% and Conservative Justin Coretti at 7%, fell a few hundred votes short of May’s.