2007 Allegheny County Executive election

2007 Allegheny County Executive election

←  2003 November 6, 2007 2011  →

Nominee Dan Onorato Party Democratic Popular vote 217,531 Percentage 99.01%

Allegheny County Executive before election Dan Onorato Democratic Elected Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato Democratic

The 2007 Allegheny County Executive election was held on November 6, 2007. Incumbent Democratic County Executive Dan Onorato ran for re-election to a second term. Despite speculation that Onorato would run for Governor in 2010 and not complete his term, ^[1] he faced only token opposition in the Democratic primary, and no other candidate filed to oppose him. Onorato won the Democratic primary in a landslide, and the Republican primary through write-in votes, enabling him to win his second term unopposed in the general election.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Dan Onorato, incumbent County Executive ^[2]
• Richard P. Swartz, nonprofit executive ^[3]

Primary results

Democratic primary results ^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Dan Onorato (inc.)	121,066	86.65%
	Democratic	Richard P. Swartz	18,469	13.22%
	Democratic	Write-ins	176	0.13%
Total votes			139,711	100.00%

Republican primary

No candidates filed for the Republican nomination, though Republican County Councilman Matt Drozd launched an informal write-in campaign for his son, also named Matt. ^[5] At the same time, Onorato's campaign targeted likely Republican primary voters with a robocall the night before the election encouraging them to write in his name. Of the 3,431 write-in votes cast, Onorato received 1,844 of them, allowing him to win the Republican nomination, as well. ^[6]

Primary results

Republican primary results ^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Dan Onorato (write-in)	1,844	53.75%
	Republican	Other write-ins	1,587	46.25%
Total votes			3,431	100.00%

General election

Results

2007 Allegheny County Executive election ^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Dan Onorato (inc.)	217,531	99.01%
	Write-in		2,166	0.99%
Total votes			219,697	100.00%
	Democratic hold

References

1. O'Toole, James (January 7, 2007). "Onorato aims for 2nd term . . . and governor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. A1. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
2. Belser, Ann (February 10, 2007). "Onorato to seek 2nd term as county chief executive". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. B2. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
3. "Primary 2007: A Voters Guide". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. May 6, 2007. p. B2. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
4. "May 15, 2007 - MUNICIPAL ELECTION - STATISTICS" (PDF). Allegheny County Elections Division. June 6, 2007. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
5. Blazina, Ed (May 17, 2007). "GOP write-ins may take 2 weeks to tally". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. A1. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
6. Belser, Ann (May 30, 2007). "DeSantis gains nod from GOP for mayor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. A1, A8. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
7. "2007 Municipal Election - November 6, 2007" (PDF). Allegheny County Elections Division. November 26, 2007. Retrieved July 7, 2025.