Pittsburgh mayor concedes to Democratic primary challenger

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto (D) conceded the mayoral Democratic primary race Tuesday night to state Rep. Ed Gainey (D), ending his bid for a third term.

“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,” Peduto tweeted Tuesday evening. 

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.

— bill peduto (@billpeduto) May 18, 2021

The concession was surprising given the large number of votes left to be tallied. Just over 51 percent of precincts in Allegheny County had reported unofficial results when Peduto conceded, and the two contenders were separated by under 2 percentage points.

Prior to serving as mayor, Peduto sat on the Pittsburgh City Council for 12 years.

Gainey ran as a progressive, touting policies like demilitarizing the police and advocating for the right of workers to unionize.

He will be the heavy favorite in the Nov. 2 general election. If he wins, he will be Pittsburgh’s first Black mayor.