Ph.D. Candidate Seeks to Secure Mayoral Race Win

By SOFIA RUBINSON Sun News Editor

Following an announcement that Mayor Laura Lewis would not be running for reelection, Alderperson Robert Cantelmo grad announced his bid for the position on Jan. 8.

“I’ve had a lot of opportunities to work closely with colleagues to build coalitions around legislation already,” Cantelmo said in an interview with The Sun. “And I have every confidence that I will continue to be able to do that in Council and continue to be able to do that in the community.”

Cantelmo is the first and only person thus far to announce his candidacy for the 2023 mayoral election, which will be held in November. He is the associate director of the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies, represents the Fifth Ward on the Common Council since winning the 2021 election — which includes parts of the Cornell community — and is finishing his Ph.D. in government at the University.

At the Einaudi Center, Cantelmo works on the Democratic Threats and Resilience initiative, which examines the causes of democratic backsliding and institutional resilience mechanisms that can help insulate democratic societies from autocratic tendencies. He said his research at the Center has relevant implications for his service on the Common Council.

“Even these hyper-local issues that we deal with about streets being paved, sidewalks being in good condition, fire departments being fully staffed, this is all service delivery stuff that matters at the local level, no matter where you are in the world,” Cantelmo said. “It’s when governments are unable to provide those basic services to their populace, that some of these risks are generated about threats to democracy. I love having the ability to engage in good evidence-based policymaking at the local level.”