Micron is breaking ground. The Interstate 81 viaduct collapsed. Syracuse will have a new mayor and SU will elect a new chancellor. We’ll see what Democrats do with a majority in the Onondaga County Legislature for the first time in 50 years.
We asked our reporters to look ahead to the big news we’ll be watching in 2026. There’s a lot on the horizon.
Dozens of local seats are up for election to determine who will represent Central New York in Albany and Washington.
Syracuse University football is getting its star quarterback back, and the Bills are looking for a long-term Super Bowl bid.
And federal changes to immigration and health care policy continue to ripple through Central New York communities.
Syracuse.com will follow it all with breaking news, in-depth reporting and thoughtful analysis.
Where else would you like to see targeted coverage? Send us a message at citynews@syracuse.com.
Elections, elections and more elections
Central New York is poised to play a key role in state and national politics in the new year as Democrats seek to gain control of Congress and Republicans look to break the Democratic grip on Albany by winning the governor’s race for the first time since 2002.
First, Republicans will have to decide on a candidate to challenge Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul.
U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik of Saratoga County resigned in December, leaving Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman in charge of the GOP. President Donald Trump endorsed Blakeman.
Democrats in Washington will try to hold onto the seat of Rep. John Mannion, D-Geddes, in central New York as the party battles to flip the House in a midterm election and serve as a check on Trump.
Rep. John Lemondes of LaFayette is challenging Mannion in hopes of winning back the seat the GOP lost in 2024. Syracuse educator Will Staton has also launched a long-shot bid to run as an independent candidate in the 22nd.n.d Congressional district.
Because of a change in state election law, county legislators are among the local legislators who join members of the state Assembly and Senate in even-numbered years. Onondaga County Sheriff Toby Shelley is also up for re-election. Republican RJ Lenhart, a former Syracuse police officer, has said he will run.
– Mark Weiner
The beginning of the end for the I-81 viaduct
In 2026, the state will begin demolishing the I-81 elevated overpass in Syracuse, closing it forever.
Contractors have spent the last two years improving the road loops around Syracuse and the approaches to Syracuse from the north and south.
Some of this work is already complete or underutilized: The northbound interchange with I-81 and Interstate 481 is complete. The old Exit 3 at the DeWitt exit is open. Brighton’s new roundabouts are operational.
Starting in the spring, the state plans to begin construction of a new roundabout at Van Buren and Almond streets. This will be the first introduction to downtown Syracuse for drivers from the south.
Once that’s in place, the state can begin removing the first array of elevated highway bridges. This is expected to happen in late 2026 and early 2027.
-Michelle Breidenbach
The beginning of the beginning for Micron
More than three years after announcing its arrival in Central New York, Micron Technology plans to break ground on a massive chip manufacturing complex in Clay City in 2026.
When Micron receives the final necessary permits from the federal government, the company plans to begin cutting down several hundred acres of trees in January. He’ll have to hurry: All tree-cutting must end by April 1, as endangered bats return to the site in the spring to breed.
In early 2026, Micron also plans to begin construction of a track and conveyor system west of Caughdenoy Road. Micron will bring up to nine million cubic yards of fill to a low-lying marsh site north of Route 31.
While the preparatory work was supposed to start at the beginning of the year, the construction and operation of the first two factories has been pushed back by two to three years. Micron now says it will produce the first memory chips in 2030.
-Glenn Coin
Rising health care costs
Rising health care costs became a lightning rod in 2025 and formed the backbone of Democrats’ argument for the longest federal government shutdown in history. In New York, hundreds of thousands of people on Obamacare and its sister state insurance, the Essential Plan, will incur thousands of dollars more in costs next year after the tax credits are rolled back.
State-regulated small business insurance is increasing by an average of 13%. Medicare Advantage plans are raising rates to make up for massive losses from the Upstate’s strange hospital funding. Meanwhile, Medicaid cuts could result in $65 million in less revenue for Syracuse hospitals, prompting job cuts, longer emergency room waits and fewer safety net services.
By the end of the year, 30,000 Central New Yorkers face losing Medicaid due to work requirements. We’ll be looking for stories about how health insurance costs and reimbursement impact residents, doctors and essential services.
-Doug Dowty
The new mayor in Syracuse
After a historic election that made her the first black female mayor in Syracuse history, Sharon Owens must navigate a challenging first year.
Owens will need to quickly begin crafting the city’s spending plan for the 2026-27 fiscal year. Syracuse has struggled with budget deficits for years. Mayor Ben Walsh clashed heavily with the Common Council last year over $16 million in spending cuts the council pushed through.
Owens will also have to lead the city through severe disruption caused by the removal of the Interstate 81 viaduct. She will also be under pressure to step up efforts to replace the lines that carry water from the city’s main pipes to homes and businesses, and to make sure the aging infrastructure can reliably provide enough water pressure to homes from last winter’s breaks, leaks and low reservoir levels.
As Owens navigates these specific challenges, she must also work on the city’s larger, long-term issues she promised to address in her mayoral campaign, including child poverty and the housing affordability crisis.
-Jeremy Boyer
A new era at Syracuse University
Syracuse University begins the new year amid a search for its next chancellor. Kent Syverud will step down in June, meaning the school will spend the first half of the year selecting a new leader.
The next chancellor will inherit the university during a challenging period for higher education. International student numbers have dropped dramatically, the federal government has cut research grants, and a demographic cliff stemming from declining birth rates since 2008 is threatening enrollment numbers. It will be up to the leader to find alternative sources of income to replace the loss of international students and ensure future students continue to choose the university.
-Emalyn Muzzy
Immigration
Like the rest of the country, Central New Yorkers have watched the federal government step up immigration enforcement this year. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol agents raided the plant, arresting drivers following traffic stops and detaining immigrants checking in for routine ICE appointments.
The effort has fueled both fear and resistance.
Our reporters will continue to investigate the federal government’s tactics in 2026, including the types of warrants it is seeking. We will supervise the cooperation of state administration bodies and local governments.
We will also keep you posted on the consequences – separated families, closed businesses and reduced numbers of students entering universities.
-Michelle Breidenbach
Democrats will get a chance at regional government
For the first time in 50 years, Democrats will have a majority in the Onondaga County Legislature, thanks to the blue wave that swept them into office in November.
They will have to quickly organize and set priorities: Everyone is waiting for re-election in November. They will be led by Nicole Watts, a budding politician who is expected to be named chair after her first days on the job.
Some new members said they will focus on mental health, county human services and housing in the new year. Others want to see if there is a way to remodel the half-built aquarium in the Inner Harbor.
– Chris Baker
Call to US Attorney
A Downstate judge is likely to decide later this year whether the top federal prosecutor in much of New York state will stay on the job.
Acting U.S. Attorney John Sarcone III is attracting controversy because he was appointed on an interim basis. A panel of judges declined to extend his term, but the Trump administration used a new strategy to try to keep him in office. Judges across the country have found these tactics illegal four times.
Senior U.S. District Judge Lorna Schofield is reviewing a challenge to Sarcone’s authority filed by Letitia James, the New York state attorney general, who Sarcone’s office is investigating.
– Jon Moss
What’s next in Novelis?
After two devastating fires, Novelis Inc. is looking to repair the damage and bring its massive aluminum plant in Oswego County to full operation in 2026. The plant produces aluminum for Ford F-150 trucks and other vehicles.
Ford estimated that the first fire alone would set them back as much as $2 billion.
Novelis said its cold mill and heat treatment operations at the Oswego County facility are back in business. He has not yet said when he expects to have his Scriba hot mill back up and running.
The company has applied to the Oswego County Industrial Development Agency for up to $15 million in sales tax exemptions about the materials needed to repair the hot mill. To use the entire exemption, up to $187.5 million would need to be spent on materials.
Novelis said 1,150 plant employees remained on the job despite the damage to the plant.
-Rick Moriarty
Bills Super Bowl?
Buffalo is making its seventh straight playoff appearance and this appears to be Josh Allen’s clearest path yet to finally reach the Super Bowl with Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs eliminated from postseason play.
While the Bills have dealt with a disproportionate number of injuries and looked shaky at times, Allen’s MVP-caliber play gives them an edge over other contenders in the AFC.
It’s an exciting time for Bills fans, who will be able to watch their team in a new $2.1 billion arena across from Highmark Stadium next season. The new stadium will have a heated grass pitch and most of the 62,000-seat stadium will be covered by a steel canopy to protect fans from wind, snow and rain.
– Nate Mink
The return of Steve Angeli
Syracuse’s 2025 football season went downhill after quarterback Steve Angeli tore his Achilles tendon. The Orange went 3-1 and led the nation in rushing yards for the second straight season. After Angeli was injured, the Orange lost all eight of their remaining games and sank to an all-time low.
Angeli was undoubtedly Syracuse’s best quarterback in 2025, but coming back from a torn Achilles is no easy task. While the pieces around him, especially along the offensive line and the addition of five-star wide receiver Calvin Russell, will be important, the Angels must live up to the promise he showed before his injury.
In a proven year for head coach Fran Brown, Angeli’s health and his new look coaching staff will help determine whether Brown can lead the Orange back to a bowl game.
-Javon Edmonds
NA Lax
Syracuse men’s lacrosse continues to rise under head coach Gary Gait.
After reaching the Final Four last season, the final step up the ladder is the national championship. Gait has put together one of SU’s toughest schedules to bolster his team’s resolve, and with a roster loaded with seniors, is expected to capture the program’s first NCAA title since 2009.
– Brent Axe
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