Rudd was fired Monday from his role as the City Budget Director
Video Transcript
Jack Ziskin, NCC News Reporter: What makes someone a democrat or a republican? Is it about values that you’re raised with? Is it about policy? Or is it just about how you register to vote? Syracuse City budget director and lifelong Democrat Tim Rudd asked that question when he re-registered and launched his mayoral campaign as a republican in name only. Rudd tried to convince local GOP leaders to back his campaign instead he was served a lawsuit.
Tim Rudd, Mayorial Candidate: They’re seeking a court injunction so I can never re-enroll. I mean it’s totally insane and there’s no one else to run. I tell them I don’t want you to get a court order I want to be able to join and they tell me no we’re getting a court order. I’m too dangerous to be a republican.
Jack Ziskin, NCC News Reporter: Rudd says that he viewed his decision to embrace the term Rhino as a proactive one. As a lifelong Democrat, he was going to be labeled a rhino anyway. Furthermore, it was easier for him to do that in a city where only 13% of registered voters are Republicans. It was just common sense, at least in his eyes. Republican Elections Commissioner for Onandaga County, Kevin Ryan, saw it differently.
Kevin Ryan, Republican Elections Commissioner for Onandaga County: You run as a republican, not a republican in name only, but as a Republican. One of the greatest presidents in American history, at one point was a Democrat, later converted in life to become a republican, right? Many people have done that. He — that’s not what he said he was doing.
Jack Ziskin, NCC News Reporter: Rudd has since re-enrolled as a Democrat and despite his short time with the GOP, he considers himself to be a RINO as well as a DINO, a Democrat name only, leading him to come out with a new idea for a campaign logo that is to put it mildly sure to spark controversy.
Tim Rudd, Mayorial Candidate: I think I’m going to make a transgendered Rhino/Dino that’s going to be purple, right? So, I’m going to have the the red and the blue and I’m just going to be a politically nonbinary, trans-political person, right? And it’s going to be this half-dinosaur, half-rhinoceros and that’s going to be my symbol and it’s just going to be Rino/Dino all day long. And I’m going to make my own line to get on the ballot and it’s going to be Rino/Dino: Republican in name only, Democrat in name only, anyways.
Jack Ziskin, NCC News Reporter: Rudd’s comments have recently landed him in hot water and his candidacy is up in the air, but one thing is for certain if Kevin Ryan has his way, Tim Rudd won’t be the Republican nominee for mayor.
Kevin Ryan, Republican Elections Commissioner for Onandaga County: The sooner the Republican party has Tim Rudd in its rear view mirror, the better. I don’t want anything more to do with him. It’s crazy and I think that he should really do some soul searching and disappear from the public eye for about a year.
Jack Ziskin, NCC News Reporter: From City Hall I’m Jack ziskin NCC news
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC NEWS) – After Tim Rudd, the City Budget Director, learned of a whistleblower complaint against the city, he put on his hoodie and decided to run for Mayor. A contractor filed a whistleblower complaint at City Hall, saying they were paid a seven figure sum to do zero work.
So Rudd tossed his hat in the ring, dropping his endorsement of Deputy Mayor Sharon Owens, a democrat running to replace Mayor Ben Walsh, an independent in his final term. Rudd believes Walsh and Owens weren’t transparent with the rest of city government or their constituents.
But this isn’t the story of a savvy political outsider taking on the system, it’s the story of a self-described “weird white guy,” who has been embroiled in a series of controversies that culminated in his firing on Monday. After all, a more seasoned politician would have seized the moment, calling for increased transparency in government before riding a wave of public support all the way to the Mayor’s Office. Instead, Rudd waded into hot water on a campaign call where he made insensitive and racist comments about Owens.
The embattled mayoral candidate previously intended to leave his position on March 18 so he could focus on his campaign. He believes he was actually fired because of his response to the whistleblower complaint.
Rudd said on Friday that his comments were influenced by a book written by former Syracuse Common Councilor and 2021 Mayoral candidate Khalid Bey. Rudd describes Bey as “his brother,” before adding that he read Bey’s book because “I’m one of the only people in city government besides Khalid, who can read a book.” Rudd continued, “He talks about the legacy of slavery and how often Black women are used by white men to do their dirty work.”
Even though Rudd withdrew his endorsement of Owens, he said that Syracuse still needs good people like her to make a positive impact.
“Owens has good qualities and weaknesses, I’m not perfect either. I make mistakes, I don’t know how people are going to react, but it doesn’t mean I’m an awful person all the time,” Rudd added.
Before his comments about Owens drew criticism, Rudd decided to re-register as a Republican. He declared himself a Republican in name only (RINO), and hoped to secure the GOP nomination for mayor as a moderate candidate.
Rudd met with Kevin Ryan, the Republican Election Commissioner for Onondaga County, and the Syracuse City GOP which declined to endorse Rudd. Ryan says, “You run as a Republican, not a Republican in name only, but as a Republican. That’s not what he said he was doing.”
Rudd has re-enrolled as a Democrat, and says that the Republican party is seeking an injunction to prevent him from re-enrolling as a Republican. Rudd insists that his policies are “basically the same” as the moderate policies of the Syracuse Republican Party.
Rudd has no plans to disappear. He has vowed to stay in the race and has embraced being both a RINO (Republican in Name Only) and a DINO (Democrat in Name Only). At the same time, he says he cast a protest vote for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and frequently compares himself to both Kennedy and President Trump—two of the most controversial figures in American politics.
His next idea is sure to raise eyebrows, “I think I’m gonna make a transgendered rhino-dino. It’s going to be purple, right? So, I’m gonna have the red and the blue, and I’m just going to be a politically nonbinary, trans-political person.”
Ryan says the Syracuse Republican Party is staying out of it.
“The sooner the Republican Party has Tim Rudd in its rearview mirror, the better. I don’t want anything more to do with him. It’s crazy. And I think that he should really do some soul-searching and disappear from the public eye for about a year.”