Anita Prizio (Democrat)
Bio: Former O’Hara town supervisor and current Allegheny County Councilor. Served as a delegate for former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders in 2016. Works as an outreach specialist for Steel Valley Authority, the Swissvale agency that provides layoff-aversion services to small and medium-sized Pennsylvania manufacturers. Lives in O’Hara. Fracking: Proposed legislation with other progressives to ban natural-gas drilling, aka fracking, within Allegheny County-controlled parks. Led the creation of a public database of all fracking sites in the county. Wants county to transition to 100% renewable energy, and when fracking does occur, wants additional oversight.
Jobs: Until recently, owned her family’s engine parts business, and says her experience as a small business owner gives her the knowledge on how government policies can help or hurt business. Wants to increase county funding to apprenticeships and community college, as well as better public transit to help those without cars access more jobs.
Flood control: Advocates for a regional flood policy so that District 3 towns in floodplains don’t bear disproportionate costs to manage floods. Wants to explore coordination and supports grantseeking to fund flood-control infrastructure, without raising fees on Allegheny County residents.
Endorsements: State Rep. Sara Innamorato, Allegheny County Councilors Bethany Hallam and Liv Bennett, The Sierra Club of Allegheny County, Clean Water Action, Working Families PA, Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania, United Electrical, Radio & Machine Workers of America, SEIU 32BJ, Steel City Stonewall Democrats, etc.
Meredith Dolan (Republican)
Bio: Graduated from Ohio University and worked as staff for Republicans on Capitol Hill. Volunteers with North Hills Community Outreach. Lives in Fox Chapel. Works for Illinois-based media startup Freedom Fries, a company named after the GOP-led push to rename french fries during the Iraq War. The company runs an aggregation site focused on right-wing cultural issues like the “transgender discussion” and “big tech censorship.” Fracking: Says additional environmental regulations will cost the county jobs. Criticized Prizio, saying her focus on climate change and green infrastructure is a tenet of the socialist platform, according to WESA.
Jobs: Opposed to any tax hikes, but said she wants to ensure police are well-funded. Says her main focus if elected would be balanced budgets and says she would look for places to shrink county spending.
Flood control: While working in Washington, D.C., says she gained experience on measures to fund wastewater treatment, transportation, and other infrastructure. Says she will participate in regular meetings with local elected officials to provide a consistent, accurate assessment of community needs.
Endorsements: Campaign committee consists of Allegheny County Councilors Sam DeMarco, Cindy Kirk, and Tom Baker; former U.S. Rep. Keith Rothfus, state Sen. Devlin Robinson, state Reps. Lori Mizgorski, Rob Mercuri, Carrie DelRosso, Natalie Mihalek, and Valerie Gaydos, etc.
