Pittsburgh’s mayoral race headlines primary Election Day in western Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh’s hotly contested mayoral race was in the spotlight as western Pennsylvanians headed to the polls to cast their vote in the primary election. 

In Pittsburgh, incumbent Mayor Ed Gainey and challenger Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor were seeking to win the Democratic nomination. 

O’Connor was projected as the winner of the Democratic mayoral primary by The Associated Press around 10:15 p.m. Tuesday.

Former police officer Tony Moreno was the projected winner of the Republican mayoral primary, besting businessman Thomas West. The parties’ nominees will face off in November. 

Polls close in Pennsylvania’s primary

The polls closed at 8 p.m. on Tuesday.

When polls opened at 7 a.m., Allegheny County reported a “smattering” of issues like power outages, equipment issues and closed buildings that prevented some polling locations from opening on time. By 9:30 a.m., a county spokesperson said everything was resolved. 

Mt. Rise Baptist Church, a polling place in the Homestead area, was closed a little before noon “out of an abundance of caution” after the judge of elections smelled natural gas, the county said. Voters were redirected to Holy Angels Church, about six minutes away.   

Pittsburgh’s Democratic mayoral candidates cast ballots

Ed Gainey is at the end of his first term. He was elected Pittsburgh’s first Black mayor after ousting Bill Peduto in the last mayoral primary. Now he’s pushing to keep his role as the city’s leader. 

“Building a city for all, you know, delivering affordable housing, 1,600, reducing the homicide rate in the city, the NFL Draft coming here, $600 million for Downtown. We continue to do what we say we’re gonna do, and that’s build a city where everybody feels seen, and where everybody feels accepted. So we’re very excited about this,” Gainey said. 

Corey O’Connor, Gainey’s challenger, is the Allegheny County controller. He’s looking to fill the role once held by his late father, Bob O’Connor.

“We have a choice in front of us today. We can take our city in a different direction where we’re more transparent, we talk about growth and opportunity in all areas. And, you know, standing here with my family, I think, for me, Pittsburgh should be every family’s first choice,” O’Connor said. 

GOP candidates vote in Pittsburgh’s mayoral race 

Tony Moreno is a retired Pittsburgh police officer who ran against Gainey in 2021. 

“We’re talking about the same exact issues we were talking about four years ago, and we demanded change four years ago, and we got more of the same on steroids. That’s why I’m here,” he said. 

Thomas West, a businessman who owns the men’s retail boutique Trim in Lawrenceville, campaigned on the promise that he’d bring fresh leadership to the city.  

“I’m just going to be me. I have a message out there about how to make the city better and how to make us live up to our full potential, so if I become the Republican nominee, that’d be great. And in November, if I win, let’s get the party rolling. I love it,” West said.

The latest election results