Despite roughly 10,000 refugees in Syracuse, not one has ever been elected to local office. Dustin Czarny, a Democratic election commissioner, said, to his knowledge, no refugee has ever even received a major party nomination for a seat in local government.
“I can’t think of any New American who’s ever been a serious candidate for office,” he said.
Officials have credited the influx of refugees with steadying the city’s long-dwindling population.
“The whole North Side is being transformed,” Czarny said.
Record number of refugees seek elected office in Syracuse this year – syracuse.com
Dustin M. Czarny 