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2021 Pittsburgh mayoral election

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2021 Pittsburgh mayoral election
← 2017 November 2, 2021 2025 →
Turnout30.7%[1]
 
Nominee Ed Gainey Tony Moreno
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 50,165 20,162
Percentage 70.8% 28.4%
Gainey:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Moreno:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Tie:      50%
Mayor before election

Bill Peduto
Democratic

Elected Mayor

Ed Gainey
Democratic

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The 2021 Pittsburgh mayoral election took place on November 2, 2021. The primary election was held on May 18, 2021. The Democratic nominee, State Representative Ed Gainey, defeated the Republican nominee, retired police officer Tony Moreno.[2]

Incumbent Democratic Mayor Bill Peduto ran for re-election to a third term in office, but lost renomination to state representative Ed Gainey.[3] Four Democrats and no Republicans filed to appear on their respective primary ballots.[4][5] Tony Moreno, though having unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination, was the Republican nominee after having earned sufficient votes in the Republican primary as a write-in candidate to win the nomination.[6] Two independent candidates had originally indicated an intention to file to appear on the general election ballot, though one withdrew and the other was removed from the ballot by judicial order.[7] With 70,885 ballots cast, this was the highest turnout for a Pittsburgh mayoral race since 1997.

Background

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Bill Peduto was first elected in the 2013 election to succeed Luke Ravenstahl and assumed office in January 2014.[8] Peduto sought and was re-elected to a second term in the 2017 election; in November 2017, Peduto garnered 96% of the vote, having not had any significant opposition in the general election.[9]

Democratic primary

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The Democratic primary election was held on May 18, 2021. As of January 2021, four candidates had indicated an intention to seek the Democratic nomination. Retired Pittsburgh Police officer Tony Moreno announced his intention in September 2019,[10] William Peduto announced his campaign for a third term in mid—January 2021,[3] and State Representative Ed Gainey launched his campaign in late January 2021.[11] Activist Will Parker launched his campaign in mid-December 2020. In March, four Democrats had filed paperwork to appear on the ballot, Peduto, Gainey, Moreno, and college math tutor and ride-sharing driver Michael Thompson. Parker did not file nominating papers.[4]

In mid-February 2021, Pittsburgh City Paper reported candidate Tony Moreno's Twitter included tweets praising Donald Trump, were supportive of Trump causes, and contained contempt for Democrats.[12] After Pittsburgh City Paper's report was published Moreno's tweets were criticised by Pittsburgh's Democratic Committee chairman, many tweets were deleted from Moreno's Twitter, and his Twitter was switched to protected status.[13]

In early March 2021, the Allegheny County Democratic Committee announced that it had endorsed Gainey over the incumbent mayor Peduto, with 326 votes. Moreno received 224 votes. Peduto did not actively seek the endorsement of the committee, citing its endorsement of a Democratic candidate for the Pennsylvania House of Representatives who had made social media posts supportive of then-President Donald Trump. Peduto received the endorsements of some other Democratic leaders, including County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, U.S. Representative Mike Doyle, and State Senate minority leader Jay Costa.[14]

Candidates

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Nominee

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Defeated in primary

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Failed to qualify

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Endorsements

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Bill Peduto
Federal officials
State officials
County officials
Local officials
Labor unions
Ed Gainey
State legislators
Local officials
Newspapers
Political organizations
  • Allegheny County Democratic Committee[26]
Labor unions

Results

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Results by ward:
  Gainey—30–40%
  Gainey—40–50%
  Gainey—50–60%
  Gainey—60–70%
  Gainey—70–80%
  Peduto—30–40%
  Peduto—40–50%
  Peduto—50–60%
  Moreno—40–50%

Bill Peduto conceded the Democratic primary election to Ed Gainey on the night of the election.[29]

Democratic primary results[30]
Candidate Votes %
Ed Gainey 26,479 46.4
Bill Peduto (incumbent) 22,406 39.2
Tony Moreno 7,442 13.0
Michael Thompson 680 1.2
Write-in 117 0.2
Total votes 57,124 100

Republican primary

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No Republican filed to run.[31]

Results

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Republican primary results[31]
Candidate Votes %
Tony Moreno (write-in) 1,379 64.6
Bill Peduto (incumbent) (write-in) 285 13.3
Ed Gainey (write-in) 176 8.2
Other write-in votes 276 12.9
Total votes 2,136 100

Aftermath

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Under Pennsylvania law, a candidate can win a party's nomination via write-in votes if they surpass 250 votes in said party's primary, even if they are not a member of that party. This means that Moreno and Peduto both qualified to appear on the November ballot as the Republican nominee. Peduto stated he had no intention of continuing his campaign and endorsed Ed Gainey.[31] Moreno announced that he would accept the Republican nomination in late June and switched his party registration to Republican.[6]

Accepted nomination

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  • Tony Moreno, retired police officer[6]
Declined
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Independents

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Failed to qualify

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Withdrawn

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  • Marlin Woods, businessman, public speaker, author, mentor[33][34]

General election

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Results

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2021 Pittsburgh mayoral election[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Ed Gainey 50,165 70.77
Republican Tony Moreno 20,162 28.44
Write-in 558 0.79
Total votes 70,885 100%
Democratic hold

References

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  1. ^ a b Allegheny County Elections Division (December 17, 2021). "November 2, 2021 Municipal Election – Mayor Pittsburgh". Election Night Reporting – Allegheny County, PA. Retrieved December 17, 2021.
  2. ^ "2021 Mayor elections results – Pittsburgh". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c Davidson, Tom (January 14, 2021). "Peduto makes it official, seeks 3rd term as Pittsburgh's mayor". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c Davidson, Tom (March 10, 2021). "Peduto to face 3 challengers in Pittsburgh mayoral race, Will Parker out". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  5. ^ Davidson, Tom (May 18, 2021). "Ed Gainey defeats Bill Peduto as incumbent concedes in Pittsburgh mayoral primary". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Archived from the original on May 19, 2021. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  6. ^ a b c Routh, Julian (June 29, 2021). "Tony Moreno accepts Republican nomination for Pittsburgh mayor, will challenge Ed Gainey in November". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on July 2, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2021.
  7. ^ a b Delano, Jon (July 16, 2021). "Marlin Woods To File Papers To Run For Mayor Of Pittsburgh, Giving City Voters 4 Choices". KDKA-TV. Retrieved August 6, 2021.
  8. ^ O'Toole, James; Balingit, Moriah (November 6, 2013). "Peduto wins Pittsburgh mayoral election in landslide". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  9. ^ "Official Results - Mayor Citywide". Allegheny County Division of Elections. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  10. ^ a b "Retired Pittsburgh police officer plans to challenge Mayor Peduto in 2021 primary". TribLive. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  11. ^ a b Staff, WPXI com News (January 20, 2021). "State Rep. Ed Gainey launching campaign for mayor of Pittsburgh". WPXI. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
  12. ^ Deto, Ryan (February 23, 2021). "Pittsburgh Democratic mayoral candidate has Twitter feed filled with Trump praise". News. Pittsburgh City Paper. Eagle Media Corp. Archived from the original on September 4, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
  13. ^ Davidson, Tom (March 2, 2021). "Candidate's old tweets touting Trump spur more turmoil among Democrats in Pittsburgh mayoral race". Local. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Archived from the original on March 6, 2021. Retrieved October 16, 2021.
  14. ^ Davidson, Tom. "Allegheny County Dems endorse Ed Gainey in Pittsburgh mayoral race". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
  15. ^ Routh, Julian (January 23, 2021). "State Rep. Ed Gainey launches official mayoral campaign". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
  16. ^ bill peduto [@billpeduto] (May 19, 2021). "I just called @gainey_ed and congratulated him on earning the Democratic endorsement for Mayor of the city of Pittsburgh. Wishing him well. Thank you Pittsburgh for the honor of being your Mayor these past 8 years. I will remain forever grateful" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021 – via Twitter.
  17. ^ "Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto Announces Reelection Campaign". CBS Pittsburgh. January 14, 2021. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  18. ^ Davidson, Tom (March 10, 2021). "Peduto to face 3 challengers in Pittsburgh mayoral race, Will Parker out". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  19. ^ a b c d "Allegheny County Dems endorse Ed Gainey in Pittsburgh mayoral race". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  20. ^ a b "Bill Peduto early favorite in mayor's race, but Ed Gainey provides a strong challenge". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g h Routh, Julian. "Councilwoman Gross endorses Peduto challenger Gainey for Pittsburgh mayor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  22. ^ "Pittsburgh mayoral endorsements start to roll in as candidates begin drive for signatures". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. February 16, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  23. ^ a b "Ed Gainey announces $130K in fundraising as incumbent Peduto gains support from teachers union". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. March 3, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  24. ^ a b c "Endorsements". Ed Gainey for Mayor. March 16, 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  25. ^ "Gainey for mayor of Pittsburgh". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  26. ^ Routh, Julian. "Allegheny County Democratic Committee endorses Gainey for Pittsburgh mayor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  27. ^ Routh, Julian. "Health workers union to endorse Rep. Gainey in Pittsburgh mayoral race". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  28. ^ carriesantoro. "SEIU Healthcare PA Announces Endorsement of Rep. Ed Gainey for Pittsburgh Mayor". SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania. Archived from the original on June 6, 2021. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  29. ^ "Incumbent Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto Concedes To Ed Gainey On Twitter". KDKA. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
  30. ^ "Dem Mayor Pittsburgh". Allegheny County, PA Election Results. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  31. ^ a b c d Routh, Julian (May 27, 2021). "Tony Moreno wins GOP nomination for Pittsburgh mayor via write-ins, could face Ed Gainey in November general election". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (published May 26, 2021). Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  32. ^ William, Parker [@Vote4WillParker] (August 25, 2021). "The Judge struck my name off the ballot today, I called him a racist and then walked out the courtroom. That racist bastard let Olga Manning get away with not having the required signatures. I'm going to file an appeal within 30 days and continue to run as a Write-In candidate" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 25, 2021. Retrieved August 25, 2021 – via Twitter.
  33. ^ "Marlin Woods running for Pittsburgh mayor as independent". WPXI. Cox Media Group. June 11, 2021. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved July 2, 2021.
  34. ^ Hayes, John (August 15, 2021). "Independent Marlin Woods withdraws from Pittsburgh mayoral race". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on August 15, 2021. Retrieved August 17, 2021.
[edit]
Official campaign websites
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