PITTSBURGH — Former Pittsburgh police officer Tony Moreno officially announced Friday afternoon that he’s running for Mayor of the City of Pittsburgh.
11 Investigates broke the story that he planned to run Wednesday night on 11 at 11.
With a handful of supporters standing behind him, Moreno made the announcement outside of the Jack Stack Pool in Brighton Heights.
“I’m letting everyone know I’m running for Mayor again here in the City of Pittsburgh,” said Moreno, who knows it’s a steep hill to climb in Pittsburgh where Democrats outnumber Republicans by a margin of 5-1.
Four years ago, Moreno ran for Mayor as a Democrat.
He lost to Ed Gainey, who defeated incumbent Mayor Bill Peduto, but Moreno received enough write-in votes to run as a Republican.
He lost to Gainey again in the general election.
After the defeat, he said he helped build the Republican party in the city.
He said he’s seen enough of the current administration and it’s time for a change.
“What we are seeing right now is a breakdown in our police department and government in total,” said Moreno.
His top priority will be public safety.
He said he plans to increase patrols and hire more police officers.
He said he has a new plan to attract officers.
“This is a state of emergency in our public safety. We can’t recruit and keep, so what do you do, you make it better, you make it attractive. We are going to boost their pay. We’re going to add to their cost of living and their pension,” said Moreno.
He also promised to find the root causes of homelessness and provide assistance to get people off the streets.
He said he will also focus on transparency and accountability in spending, while creating a business-friendly environment by cutting taxes, providing incentives, and luring new businesses.
Moreno claimed the current administration has made that difficult to do.
“You have to jump through so many hoops trying to get permits to build and if you don’t build the way they want you to, then you are not building here,” said Moreno.
Moreno is the only Republican to declare so far, but 11 Investigates has learned that other potential Republican candidates are considering running.
On the Democratic side, Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor is challenging incumbent Mayor Ed Gainey.
No other Democrats have jumped into the race yet.
Gainey is seeking his second term after upsetting incumbent Mayor Bill Peduto four years ago in the Democratic primary.
Moreno said he offers voters a much different option than Gainey or O’Connor.
“They are the same person, they run on the same policies. You are not getting anything new,” said Moreno, who promised to bring a fresh approach to city government with conservative values.
Channel 11 reached out to the campaigns for both Mayor Ed Gainey and Allegheny County Controller Corey O’Connor, but as of this writing had not heard back.
The primary election is in May.
The winner from both sides will then square off in the general election in November.
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
©2025 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/XCUXZC2XYZHCRGNNGKFEX6U3LQ.png)
