NY 52nd Senate District: What to know about race between Richard David, Lea Webb

The race to represent New York’s 52nd Senate District will see a match between two former City of Binghamton politicians.

Former Binghamton Mayor Rich David is running on the Republican ticket opposite Lea Webb, a Democrat and former city councilwoman.

The newly formed 52nd Senate District includes all of Cortland and Tompkins counties and a portion of Broome County, including the city of Binghamton and the towns of Binghamton, Chenango, Dickinson, Lisle, Maine, Nanticoke, Union and Vestal.

The updated Senate District is largely a replacement for the one currently represented by state Sen. Fred Akshar, R-Endwell. The newly drawn district lines now include the city of Ithaca, a longtime Democratic stronghold currently represented by Republican Tom O'Mara.

Both candidates touted their respective records of public service, particularly with regard to representing Binghamton.

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Who are Richard David and Lea Webb?

David concluded his second term as mayor at the end of last year. He previously served under former Mayor Richard Bucci, eventually rising to the role of deputy mayor in 2004.

Prior to his 2013 bid for the city’s top job, David worked in public affairs for SUNY Broome Community College, calling on his background in journalism and communications, which included a stint as a reporter for WBNG-TV.

From 2008 to 2016, Webb represented District 4, which encompasses part of downtown and most of the North Side, on Binghamton City Council, the first and youngest Black woman in the city’s history to do so.

In their respective former roles with the city of Binghamton, both candidates helped bring a grocery to the North Side, the first in the neighborhood for nearly three decades.

Greater Good Grocery, a project of the Broome County Council of Churches, opened in Canal Plaza last year, providing fresh meats and produce at an affordable cost to hundreds of North Side residents.

The USA TODAY Network New York asked both candidates about issues facing the 52nd Senate District, including development and the economy, housing and reproductive rights.

David and Webb on development

Throughout their time in office, both candidates also tamped down blighted and vacant properties throughout the city.

As councilwoman, Webb supported the redevelopment of blighted properties into livable homes and helped establish the vacant property registry. For his part, David helped redirect foreclosed properties slated for county auction into the city’s side lot program, where they were made available for purchase by neighboring property owners or converted to green space for permanent flood hazard mitigation.

Both Webb and David expressed eagerness to continue to expand housing opportunities throughout the 52nd District.

Webb said she aims to prioritize the development of affordable housing, citing the rising rates of eviction and homelessness throughout Broome County.

David said he hopes to entice new business owners and families to relocate to the Southern Tier with the promise of expanded job opportunities and improved infrastructure, made possible by grant opportunities for business owners and a permanent suspension of the state gas tax.

Webb on community ties, advocacy

Webb currently works as a diversity education coordinator at Binghamton University, where she develops diversity and inclusion training and programs for faculty, staff and students.

Webb was previously employed as a community organizer with the Southern Tier chapter of Citizen Action, a grassroots nonprofit dedicated to fostering societal change. She cut her teeth in community leadership as a 15-year-old organizing the annual Thanksgiving community meal at her family’s church.

Webb said she believes strongly in supporting access to reproductive health care, particularly in a tense post-Roe political climate.

“Reproductive choice has always been a top priority for me,” she said.

The right to access abortion was codified into New York State law in 2019, meaning that the same protections afforded under Roe v. Wade still stand in the state.

David on reproductive rights

David also affirmed his support for freedom of reproductive choice, pointing to his upbringing as the son of an OB/GYN for his progressive views uncharacteristic of his conservative cohort, though he said he draws the line at late-term abortion.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, abortions performed at 21 weeks or more of gestation – commonly referred to as late-term abortions – accounted for less than 1% of nationwide abortions in 2019, the most recent year for which data is available. 93% of abortions occurred during the first trimester – at or before 13 weeks of gestation – and an additional 6% occurred between 14 and 20 weeks of pregnancy.

David also highlighted the unlikelihood of a rollback in New York’s abortion protections under a Democratic-controlled State Legislature.

However, the issue remains possible under the potential leadership of Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin, a political ally of David’s who has campaigned broadly on anti-abortion rhetoric.

If elected governor, Zeldin would have the power to restrict funding for abortion-rights programs through the executive budget, and to limit insurance coverage for contraceptives through the state Department of Financial Services.

This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Richard David vs. Lea Webb in NY District 52 Senate election