2009 Pittsburgh mayoral election


Pittsburgh held a mayoral election on November 3, 2009. Incumbent mayor Luke Ravenstahl, a Democrat, defeated his two independent challengers by a wide margin. The 2009 election was the first regular-cycle election in which Ravenstahl participated; he was originally appointed as an interim mayor to succeed Bob O'Connor and subsequently won a special election in 2007.

Primary

The primary election was held on May 19, 2009. In the Democratic primary, incumbent Mayor Ravenstahl defeated challengers Patrick Dowd, a Pittsburgh city councilman, and Carmen Robinson, an attorney and former police officer.
The Republican primary had no names on the ballot for the office of mayor. Ravenstahl, a Democrat, won the Republican mayoral nomination with 607 write-in votes; no other candidate had the 250 write-in votes required to become the Republican nominee.

General

Ravenstahl, having been nominated by both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, appeared on the general-election ballot with both affiliations. He was joined by two other candidates: businessman Franco 'Dok' Harris, who ran under the Franco Dok Harris Party, and attorney Kevin Acklin, who ran as an independent. Ravenstahl's relationship with lobbyist John Verbanac became a campaign issue.
Ravenstahl defeated both Harris and Acklin by a wide margin, winning over 55 percent of the vote.

Election results

Democratic primary

General election

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