In 2021 Ed Gainey was elected the 61st mayor of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was the first African American to be mayor of the city.
Ed Gainey was born on February 20, 1970 in East Liberty, Pennsylvania to a single, teenage mother, Darlene Gainey-Craig. His mother, extended family, and local community supported young Gainey, encouraging him to do well in school. Gainey graduated from Peabody High School in East Liberty in 1988. He then pursued his studies at the Community College of Allegheny County but later transferred to Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, an historically Black college.
While attending Morgan State he became politically active when the University of Maryland attempted absorb Morgan State into the state university system. Gainey worked with Baltimore Mayor Kurt Schmoke to organize resistance to the proposed takeover. Schmoke, the first African American mayor of Baltimore, became a role model for young Gainey.
After earning a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management (1994), Gainey returned to Pittsburgh. Early in his career he was employed as a legislative aide to Pennsylvania State Representative, Joseph Preston, Jr. Later he worked as a Community Development Specialist under two mayoral administrations. He also worked with the Pittsburgh police department to improve its recruitment and hiring process.
Gainey’s first foray into politics came in 2004 when he ran unsuccessfully for the 24th District seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He ran for the same office again in 2006 and, again, was unsuccessful. He then turned his attention to working within the local Democratic Party establishment. In 2010 he became chairman of the Pittsburgh Democratic Party Committee.
In 2012, on his third attempt, Gainey won the 24th district seat defeating his former employer, Representative Preston in the Democratic primary and then winning the general election in November. Gainey represented the 24th district in the state legislature from 2013 to 2022 which included the majority black neighborhoods of Pittsburgh: Homewood, East Liberty, East Hills and Lincoln-Lemington. While in office he was an active member of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus.
In January 2021 Gainey resigned from the state house and announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for mayor. He challenged two-term mayor Bill Peduto in the Democratic primary in May 2021, defeating him, 46% to 39%, to become the Democratic candidate for mayor of Pittsburgh. In the November general election Gainey defeated his Republican opponent, Tony Moreno, winning 70% of the vote. On January 3, 2022, Gainey was sworn into office as the 61st mayor of Pittsburgh.
As mayor Gainey prioritized public safety. He hired more police officers and expanded and updated their training. He appointed a new police chief and promoted criminal justice reform including the decriminalization of marijuana. He also supported quality education, improvements in the public transportation system, and more affordable housing in the city.
Ed Gainey and his wife, the former Michelle Coburn, have three children: Mariah Peeples, Alexa and Darius.
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“Biography Ed Gainey,” Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania City Government, https://www.pittsburghpa.gov/City-Government/Mayor/Biography; “Ed Gainey: Morgan Alumni and Pittsburg mayor,” The MSU Spokesman.com., https://themsuspokesman.com/16383/special-coverage/ed-gainey-morgan-alum-and-pittsburgh-mayor/; “Meet Ed,” GaineyforMayor.com, https://gaineyformayor.com/meet-ed/.
