Background
Alex Horton holds a BA in Strategic Communications from SUNY Oneonta with a minor in Political Science. His pre-Troy career was entirely in partisan political work: Campaign Manager for Republican NY State Supreme Court candidate Thomas Marcelle in the Third Judicial District in 2022, then Field Representative for U.S. Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY-19) from January 2023 until Molinaro lost his reelection bid in November 2024. Horton came directly from Molinaro’s congressional office to Troy City Hall.
Mantello hired him as Communications Director on January 14, 2025, announcing he “brings a great amount of experience in strategic communications, and a strong commitment to transparent and effective communication with our residents.” She also designated him Records Access Officer, the city’s formal point of contact for Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) requests under New York State law.
Horton stated at his hire that he looked forward to “collaborating with city leaders, departments, staff, and the community to ensure open and effective communications that reflects the city’s goals and values.”
What the Role Requires
The Communications Director manages the city’s public messaging and press function. The Records Access Officer carries legal obligations under FOIL: processing requests on statutory deadlines, correctly applying exemptions, and ensuring residents’ rights to government records are honored. Failures to comply can result in state enforcement action.
The Gap
Horton’s entire career before Troy was in partisan campaign operations, with no background in government communications, journalism, or public records law. At the April 23, 2026 city council meeting, he testified that his only FOIL training was a single in-house walkthrough of the GovQA software portal. He could not recall the name of the staffer who conducted it.
Corporation Counsel Morrissey, who also could not recall his own FOIL training, confirmed he had trained Horton on which exemptions apply to which requests.
The record under Horton’s tenure: at the January 8, 2026 council meeting, the new council’s first public-facing event, a resident testified that he had emailed Horton twice about downtown benches removed by the administration and received no response either time. He filed a FOIL request. The city said it had no records on the matter. His conclusion, on the record: “Either they lied to me or they have really bad records.” Separately, a resident testified at the same meeting about a public records matter, filed a formal FOIL request, and received nothing back. The city’s FOIL denials on Flock Safety surveillance camera data drew a response from the New York State Committee on Open Government, the state body that advises municipalities on FOIL compliance, which the resident reported was “dumbfounded” by the denial.
Mantello announced Horton’s hire on January 14, 2025. The administration’s FOIL denials were documented in council testimony beginning in May 2025, four months later.
Sources: Troy City Council Law Committee and Finance Meeting, April 23, 2026 (transcript); Troy City Council Regular Meeting, January 8, 2026 (transcript); Troy City Council Committee Night and Finance Meeting, May 21, 2025 (transcript); Mayor Mantello Announces Hiring of City Communications Director, troyny.gov; LegiStorm — Alex Horton