Allegheny County Executive Race 2023: Which Candidate Has The Edge?

PITTSBURGH, PA — An inevitable upheaval is about to occur in Allegheny County government. County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, who has led the county for the past 12 years, is term limited and can't seek a fourth term at the helm.

So come January, someone else will be in charge of a county with a population of 1.2 million, a $3 billion budget, 7,500 employees, 400 miles of roads and 500 bridges.

Who will it be? At the moment, the battle for victory in the May 16th Democratic primary appears to come down as to whether voters want a traditional or progressive Democrat at the helm of county government. The Republicans thus far have only one candidate seeking the position.

Here are the candidates:

• John Weinstein: Having served as Allegheny County's treasurer since 1999, the politically well-connected Weinstein has raised the most money by far of any county executive candidate.

But Weinstein has taken heat for receiving more than $200,000 in campaign contributions from entities that were awarded contracts approved by Weinstein or a county board he sat on.

Also, Weinstein has come under scrutiny for having spent more than $1.2 million in campaign contributions on lavish meals, Rivers Club memberships and other items since 2014 - despite having no opponent for treasurer, Democrat or Republican, during that time.

"Mr. Weinstein is spending a hell of a lot of money to campaign against Harvey the Rabbit," Eric Epstein, head of the government watchdog group Rock the Capitol, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Weinstein has been endorsed by the county Democratic Committee and the AFL-CIO Allegheny-Fayette County Labor Council.

• Sara Innamorato: Since 2019, she has served as the state representative for the 21st Legislative District, which includes portions of Pittsburgh, Etna, Millvale and Reserve and Shaler townships. The progressive candidate has been endorsed by Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee of Pittsburgh and the Pennsylvania Working Families Party.

• Michael Lamb: Pittsburgh city controller since 2008, Lamb decided not to run for reelection to run for county executive. As controller, Lamb created Open Book Pittsburgh, a website that allows citizens to search and view all City contracts, and campaign contributions and expenses of all candidates running for office in Pittsburgh.

• Dave Fawcett: He once served two terms as a Republican county councilman but now is a Democrat. Fawcett is a trial attorney for the Reed Smith law firm and also renders pro bono legal services for the Pennsylvania Innocence Project and other nonprofit organizations. The Oakmont resident holds a bachelor's degree in English and economics from Carnegie Mellon University and received his law degree from the University of Pittsburgh.

• Will Parker: He is the CEO of VendSpin, a mobile delivery app that he founded, and also an unsuccessful candidate in Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District last year.

• Joe Rockey: Currently the only Republican candidate in the executive race, Rockey is the retired chief risk officer for PNC.