We are pleased to announce a nonpartisan Pittsburgh Mayoral Forum taking place on April 29th at Point Park University in their beautiful Pittsburgh Playhouse. In partnership with the Voting Is Power – a regional nonpartisan voting coalition – and PublicSource, we will host all candidates officially on the ballot for the office of Mayor of the City of Pittsburgh. All candidates have confirmed their attendance and we look forward to being with them and neighbors from around the City. We are strictly nonpartisan and we will not endorse a candidate, but seek to provide an excellent opportunity for Pittsburghers to be with and hear directly from all candidates in advance of the primary on May 20th, 2025.

We are accepting questions and suggestions for themes from the public that we will use to finalize the questions asked of all candidates. Please see the bottom of this post for the form to submit your ideas.

This event is free and open to the public. If you would like to register to help us have a sense of attendance, please register here on Google Forms or here on Facebook.

History

Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy at the first PUMP Mayoral Forum held at the University of Pittsburgh

PUMP has consistently held Mayoral Debates and Forums since the 1990’s. Our first debate took place on October 26th, 1996 for the Democratic Primary with Mayor Tom Murphy, Councilman Bob O’Connor, and Chaston Roston. The event was broadcast live on WQED-TV. Our first Mayoral Forum took place on December 8, 1998 with Mayor Tom Murphy at the University of Pittsburgh.

In 2023, we worked to put together a regional nonpartisan voting coalition that became Voting is Power (VIP) and held a Countywide Candidate Event and County Executive Candidate Forum. Point Park hosted that forum and welcomed guests from around the city to Downtown Pittsburgh. Since then, the coalition has organized multiple Meet and Greets around each primary and general election for all local races and collaborated with elected officials to encourage people to vote.

The primary will take place on May 20th, 2025. Please see the resources and information on Allegheny County’s website to learn more about the election, how to become an election worker, how to check your registration, how to register, and where and how to vote.

The League of Women Voters of Greater Pittsburgh has many great resources to learn more about the election and primary process, candidates running for office, and other relevant topics. Visit http://lwvpgh.org/primary for their Primary Elections Basics – Information for Allegheny County Voters. And visit https://www.vote411.org/ to learn more general information and view their candidate guide for the primary.

Submit a question or theme for consideration:

All submissions will be vetted and considered for inclusion by the coalition and PublicSource in advance of the forum. If you would like your name and neighborhood to be included should we use your suggestion, please check the box indicating your consent.