Onondaga County Legislator David Knapp said he intends to run for a state Assembly seat in 2026.
A Republican, Knapp currently represents Onondaga County’s southeastern neighborhoods in the county legislature and said he will run for the 126th state Assembly District seat. The seat is currently held by Republican Assemblyman John Lemondes, who is vacating the seat to run for Congress next year.
The Assembly seat covers areas south, west and northwest of Syracuse in Onondaga and Cayuga counties, and includes Pompey, Fabius, Skaneateles, Auburn, Weedsport, Jordan, Camillus and Baldwinsville.
“I value my time in local and county government, and believe my experience will make me a valuable voice in #Albany,” Knapp said in a Facebook post.
Knapp was born in LaFayette, served in the U.S. Army and has served in local government for many years, being elected to the LaFayette Town Board in 1999 and to the county legislature in 2011. He served as chairman of the legislature from 2018 to 2022.
The announcement comes as Republicans are about to cede their majority of the county Legislature to the Democrats for the first time in decades after Democrats took the majority in elections this fall.