The short version
- Mark Walczyk (Republican, Conservative) has held the seat since 2023. This is the first time he has an opponent for it.
- Cassie Robbins-Forbus (Democrat, Working Families) is a Lowville grant writer at Samaritan Medical Center, running for the first time.
- The real choice: an incumbent with a record of mostly local bills, in the Senate's minority party, or a newcomer who argues a member of the majority could deliver more for the region.
Your state senator votes on the state budget, which pays for school aid, Medicaid and roads, and carries bills for the district, like extending a county sales tax or fixing a local road. Here is how the two candidates line up.
Who they are
Walczyk
41, lives near Sackets Harbor. Watertown City Council (2016–18), Assembly (2019–22), State Senate since 2023. Army Reserve officer, deployed to the Middle East in 2024.
Robbins-Forbus
47, from Lowville. Former Spanish teacher at Lowville Academy, worked at the Kraft-Heinz plant and in youth drug-prevention programs. Chair of the Lewis County Democratic Committee. We found no campaign website.
You want someone who gets things done in Albany
Walczyk
28 of his bills were signed in four years (11 in 2025–26, 17 in 2023–24), many of them local, such as extending Jefferson County's added sales tax. His larger statewide bills, such as removing a utility charge, were voted down in committee along party lines.
Robbins-Forbus
No legislative record yet. She argues a senator from the majority party (Democrats hold the Senate) could work with colleagues faster.
The catch: Walczyk's record shows local bills passing and his statewide bills stalling in a Senate run by the other party; Robbins-Forbus's argument about the majority is untested, since she has no record yet.
You care most about your electric bill
Walczyk
Filed a bill to end the System Benefits Charge (about $1.79 a month on a typical home bill) and one requiring a cost-to-ratepayers estimate on energy bills. Supports nuclear, hydro and biomass.
Robbins-Forbus
Names rising utility bills as a top concern; we found no specific proposal.
You care about health care and the local hospitals
Walczyk
Pressed the state in December 2025 to release withheld money for North Star, the Carthage hospital's parent company. Filed a housekeeping bill on Clifton-Fine Hospital (it does not close the hospital).
Robbins-Forbus
Works at Samaritan. Opposes federal health cuts and, at an April forum, backed a New York single-payer health system funded by taxes on the wealthy.
You have kids in a rural school
Walczyk
We found no school-funding proposal. Endorsed by NYSUT, the teachers' union.
Robbins-Forbus
Opposes school vouchers; wants fairer funding for rural schools.
We found no debate between the two. If one is scheduled before Election Day, it is worth watching.
Full profiles with sources are in Read Before You Vote. WBA does not endorse candidates. This is a plain-English summary; every number comes from our full research, where each fact has a source.