Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Running A City At 27: Pittsburgh's Twentysomething Mayor

Pittsburgh isn't necessarily one of more exciting cities in the country, unless the Steelers are playing. Being from New York, Pittsburgh is more like a tiny suburb to me than an American metropolis. It does have am interesting claim to political fame; the youngest mayor of a major city ever.



Luke Ravenstahl is only 27 years old and he is the Mayor of Pennsylvania's second largest city. His path to the head of the Steel City was a strange and unique one.
Ravenstahl, a Democrat, was elected to the City Council in November 2003, only months after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh. He took office in January, 2004 at the age of 23 years, 11 months. (by comparison that means he was exactly my age when elected...weird).

Ravenstahl became president of the city council in December, 2005. His elected as President was not without controversy as many wondered if, at age 25, he was old enough and experienced enough to take on that challenge. Nobody had even considered the possibility of what would happen nine months later.

On September 1, 2006, the unthinkable happened. Pittsburgh Mayor Bob O'Conner, who had only been serving since January, died of brain cancer. Pittsburgh's city charter mandated the President of the City Council would succeed to become Mayor in the event of death or vacancy. That propelled the 26 year old Pittsburgh native right into one of the most powerful jobs in the Commonwealth.
Mayor Ravenstahl reassured Pittsburgh citizens that despite his age, he was ready to lead. After he took office and with the support and encouragement of his predecessor's widow, he appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman and became the subject of a New York Times feature story. He vowed to become a cheerleader for his city and dedicate his term in memory of O'Conner.
In October 2006, the Allegheny County Board of Elections decided to hold a special mayor's race in November 6, 2007 following a primary on May 15. (the next elections were scheduled for 2009). Ravenstahl is running, but he has opponents in both the primary and general election.
The mayor's term has been a rather quiet one, and he remains fairly popular, but as the chair of the Allegheny County Democratic Committee has said, Ravenstahl does not necessarily have "a lock" on the 2007 election.
Still, if Ravenstahl can convince the citizens of Pittsburgh to elect him this year, their twenty something mayor may very well be positioned to become one of Pennsylvania's rising star Democrats. At 27, he has a good half century left in his political career.

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