Corey O'Connor

Corey O'Connor
62nd Mayor of Pittsburgh
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 5, 2026
Preceded byEd Gainey
Controller of Allegheny County
In office
July 10, 2022 – January 5, 2026
Preceded byChelsa Wagner
Succeeded byAmy Weise Clements (Acting)
Member of the Pittsburgh City Council
from the 5th district
In office
January 3, 2012 – July 10, 2022
Preceded byDoug Shields
Succeeded byBarbara Warwick
Personal details
Born (1984-08-22) August 22, 1984
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
PartyDemocratic
SpouseKatie McLaughlin
RelativesBob O'Connor (father)
EducationDuquesne University (BA)

Corey O'Connor (born August 22, 1984)[1] is an American politician who has served as the mayor of Pittsburgh since January 5, 2026. O'Connor previously served as the controller of Allegheny County from July 2022 to January 2026. Prior to becoming controller, he served as a member of the Pittsburgh City Council and represented District 5.[2] O'Connor is the son of former Pittsburgh mayor Bob O'Connor.

Family and education

O'Connor was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Bob O'Connor and Judy Levine O'Connor. He is the youngest brother of Terrence O'Connor, a priest, and Heidy Garth. Bob represented District 5 as a member of Pittsburgh City Council from 1992 to 2003, including a four year stint as council president; he was then elected Pittsburgh mayor in 2005, but six months after taking office in January 2006, he was diagnosed with a rare brain cancer and died seven months later.[3] In his father's memory, Corey and his family established the Bob O'Connor Memorial Fund. To support the fund, they host the yearly "O'Connor Cookie Cruise" on the Gateway Clipper Fleet, which is attended by thousands.[4][5]

O'Connor graduated from Central Catholic High School and earned his bachelor's degree in elementary education from Duquesne University.[6] He married Katie Stohlberg on June 29, 2013.[7] Nearly 8 years later, he married Katie McLaughlin on April 16, 2021, and they reside in Pittsburgh's Swisshelm Park neighborhood with their daughter and son.[6]

Career

O'Connor began serving as the Pittsburgh City Council member for District 5 on January 3, 2012. His district included the neighborhoods of Glen Hazel, Greenfield, Hays, Hazelwood, Lincoln Place, New Homestead, Regent Square, Squirrel Hill South, and Swisshelm Park.

O'Connor received national media coverage for his response to the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting.[8][9] He subsequently co-sponsored or supported gun reform legislation.[10][11] He has also advocated nationally for stricter gun ordinances.[12][13][14]

In 2022, O'Connor was nominated by Governor Tom Wolf and then confirmed by a Pennsylvania State Senate committee to become the next Allegheny County Controller, filling the vacancy left when Chelsa Wagner vacated the office on January 3, 2022, after being elected in 2021 to serve as a judge on the county's Court of Common Pleas.[15] On July 10, 2022, O'Connor resigned as a member of city council and then was immediately sworn in as county controller.[16] He was elected to a full term in 2023.

O'Connor's vacated city councilmember position was succeeded by Democrat Barbara Greenwood Warwick in a special election on November 8, 2022.[17]

Mayor of Pittsburgh

On December 10, 2024, O'Connor announced that he would run for Mayor of Pittsburgh in the 2025 election, challenging Ed Gainey in the Democratic primary.[18] On May 20, 2025, O'Connor defeated Gainey in the primary election.[19][20] In the general election, he ran against Republican Tony Moreno, who was Gainey's opponent in 2021, and won with 86% of the vote.[21][22]

References

  1. ^ Wolfson, Charlie (December 10, 2024). "Corey O'Connor launches run for Pittsburgh mayor against Ed Gainey". Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
  2. ^ Ray, Sean (March 17, 2016). "Corey O'Connor On His Family's Irish Origins And Traditions". WESA (FM). Pittsburgh. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  3. ^ Lord, Rich (September 2, 2006). "City Mourns the Death of Mayor Bob O'Connor at Age 61". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  4. ^ "The Return of the O'Connor Cookie Cruise". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 30, 2008. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  5. ^ "Pittsburgh's Cookie Cruise sets sail again". WTAE-TV. August 22, 2012. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  6. ^ a b "Councilman Corey O'Connor". City of Pittsburgh. Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2020.
  7. ^ "Katie Stohlberg & Corey O'Connor". Pittsburgh Magazine. February 14, 2014. Retrieved February 14, 2025.
  8. ^ Santanam, Ramesh (March 27, 2019). "Pittsburgh moves to restrict guns after attack on synagogue". Florida Today. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  9. ^ Rubinkam, Michael (March 27, 2019). "After synagogue attack, Pittsburgh tries again to curb guns". The Times of Israel. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  10. ^ Gajanan, Mahita (April 3, 2019). "Pittsburgh Is Moving Forward With Gun Reform After the Tree of Life Shooting. But the Legal Battle Is Just Beginning". TIME. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  11. ^ "Pittsburgh moves to restrict guns after Tree of Life Synagogue attack". NBC News. March 27, 2019. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  12. ^ Smeltz, Adam (October 30, 2018). "Pittsburgh 'ready to fight' on gun issues, Councilman O'Connor says". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  13. ^ Borter, Gabriella (December 18, 2018). "Pittsburgh considers stricter gun laws after synagogue attack". Reuters. Pittsburgh. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  14. ^ Shoemaker, J. Dale (April 2, 2019). "Pittsburgh city council passes landmark gun legislation. NRA prematurely said it filed suit". Public Source. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  15. ^ Deto, Ryan (June 29, 2022). "Pittsburgh City Councilman Corey O'Connor poised to become Allegheny County's controller". Triblive.com. Retrieved July 3, 2022.
  16. ^ Lee, Lauren (July 10, 2022). "Corey O'Connor sworn in as Allegheny County Controller". WTAE. Retrieved July 11, 2022.
  17. ^ "Election Night Reporting". Archived from the original on November 12, 2022. Retrieved November 12, 2022.
  18. ^ Wolfson, Charlie (December 10, 2024). "Corey O'Connor launches run for Pittsburgh mayor against Ed Gainey". Pennsylvania Capital-Star. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
  19. ^ Bartos, Madeline; Bahanna, Garrett (May 20, 2025). "Corey O'Connor wins Pittsburgh's hotly contested Democratic mayoral primary". KDKA News. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
  20. ^ Maruca, Julia; Potter, Chris (May 20, 2025). "Pittsburgh mayor: O'Connor defeats Gainey in Democratic primary; Moreno wins on GOP side". 90.5 WESA. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
  21. ^ "Pittsburgh Mayor Primary Election Results". New York Times. May 20, 2025. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
  22. ^ Witz, Billy (May 21, 2025). "O'Connor Wins Democratic Primary for Pittsburgh Mayor, Defeating Incumbent". The New York Times.
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