Politics Preview

The looming 2012 presidential race has likely overshadowed municipal elections in the minds of… The looming 2012 presidential race has likely overshadowed municipal elections in the minds of many Pitt students.

Those elected representatives however, handle issues that affect students’ everyday lives, such as county funding for the Port Authority, parking rates in Pittsburgh and a possible ban on drilling in the Marcellus Shale under the city.

Municipal primaries took place across Pennsylvania on May 17, as 20 percent of eligible voters took to the polls to vote for various state and local party candidates. Overall, incumbents claimed victory in most races and will face their challengers in the Nov. 8 elections.

County Executive

Dan Onorato has made it clear that he will not seek a third term as Allegheny County executive after his defeat by Gov. Tom Corbett in the governor’s race last fall, and the candidates for his county executive seat have been set.

Rich Fitzgerald, former County Council president and Councilman for District 11, won the Democratic nomination after defeating current County Controller Mark Flaherty in a tight race, Fitzgerald edging out Flaherty by 923-918.

Fitzgerald’s campaign manager Mike Mikus said strong labor support along with a good ground game won Fitzgerald the election. Volunteers for his campaign knocked on thousands of doors throughout Allegheny County and called more than 150,000 people.

“I’ve worked on a lot of campaigns, and Rich is the hardest-working person I have ever worked for,” Mikus said. “This is a guy who was up early and out late knocking on as many doors and making as many phone calls to reach out to as many voters as possible.”

Fitzgerald also won the support of the Allegheny County Labor Council and several major unions, such as United Steelworkers,— mainly because of his focus on jobs.

“My number one goal is jobs … which was my goal as council president,” Fitzgerald said. “Our unemployment rate has consistently been two-and-a-half points below the national average, and we need to continue growing jobs.”

Fitzgerald said he deserves the position because he possesses the “experience and know-how” to keep growth in this region.

“We see more young people moving here than are moving away, which erases a 25-year trend,” Fitzgerald said. “I have been in the forefront of this change over the last 12 years.”

Fitzgerald might face another difficult election when running against former Mt. Lebanon Commissioner D. Raja for the open seat. Republicans have won this seat before and Raja plans to win the seat for the GOP just as Republican Allegheny County Chairman Jim Roddey did before Onorato defeated him eight years ago.

Raja, a high-tech-business entrepreneur and Indian immigrant, defeated Chuck McCullough — whose campaign was muddled by a pending criminal trial — for the GOP bid.

Raja pointed to the region’s unemployment rate, declining flights out of Pittsburgh International Airport, cuts in bus services and increasing debt as reasons why he should be elected in a county that historically votes Democrat.

“If you look at the county objectively, you will see we are on a slow decline. Airport flights are down. Unemployment is up. We can’t balance a budget. We are not attracting new businesses. The county has no vision for success,” Raja said. “We must strive for economic prosperity and a high-quality standard of living.”

Mark Harris, Raja’s campaign manager, said he believes that Fitzgerald is “more of the same.” He emphasized that change is needed and that Raja is the perfect candidate for the job, painting Raja as an outsider.

Harris points to Raja’s Indian background and success as a businessman to demonstrate to voters that Raja is a different kind of candidate.

“I think a lot of people would say that [not being] Irish, or [not being] a Democrat, or [not being] from the same line of politicians that have driven Allegheny County off the rails are weaknesses,” Raja said. “To me, I think they are assets. We need something different, and I will bring that to county government.”

County Controller

Mark Flaherty’s seat as county controller is up for grabs. The controller is the chief elected fiscal officer for Allegheny County and manages general supervision and control of the County’s fiscal activities.

State Rep. Chelsa Wagner, D-Pittsburgh, claimed victory during a three-way bid for the nomination for the position. Shewill face former North Hills school director and retired business executive Robert Howard, who ran unopposed for the Republican nomination.

Wagner recently voted against the 2011 state budget, believing that it would unfairly shift the burden of the economic recovery onto local schools, governments and taxpayers.

“It cuts millions of dollars from vital county government services and programs, shifting the burden to these already struggling and overburdened agencies and leaving county governments with dire options: either eliminate the programs completely or increase taxes to make up the revenue,” Wagner said on her website.

Howard is a “seasoned business executive with controllership experience” who said he believes Allegheny County needs a fresh set of eyes. He has experience with budgeting, financial controls, performance audits and information technology, according to his website.

Allegheny County Council

Democrat Bill Robinson, who represents Oakland’s Ward 4, among others, did not have to compete for his seat on county council this year.

Republican Heather Heidelbaugh won her race over Ed Kress in May for the GOP’s at-large Allegheny County Councilmember seat . She’ll be unopposed on the November ballot along with Democratic at-large member

John DeFazio. Under the county charter, each party is guaranteed an at-large seat on the council.

Former Pitt political science professor Barbara Danko won the primary for the District 11 seat, which was formerly held by Fitzgerald, and will run unopposed unless an independent decides to run against her.

District 7 also has a seat up for grabs, and Republican Mike Dell of Plum will run against Democrat Nick Futules of Verona.

City Council

Districts 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 all had City Council seats up for grabs.

Oakland is located within three districts, 3, 6 and 8. The Councilmen currently in those positions include Bruce Kraus, R. Daniel Lavelle and Bill Peduto, respectively.

Bruce Kraus was renominated in District 3, and Corey O’Connor won the Democratic nomination in District 5 after Doug Shields decided to run for district judge.

In a tight race, incumbent Darlene Harris, Pittsburgh’s City Council president, beat out three other candidates to win the Democratic nomination in District 1. She edged out Vince Pallus, a candidate endorsed by the Ravenstahl administration.

Incumbents Patrick Dowd was renominated in District 7 and Rev. Ricky Burgess won in District 9.

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl had expressed in recent months that he wanted change on the Council after last fall’s plan to save the city’s sinking pension plan strained relationships between the mayor and the Councilmembers.

Ravenstahl and his repesentatives did not return multiple attempts for comment.