Hip surgery to force GOP's Moreno off Pittsburgh mayoral campaign trail for 1 month

Tony Moreno, the Pittsburgh Republican mayoral hopeful, will be off the campaign trail for up to a month following an upcoming hip surgery.

Moreno, a retired Pittsburgh police officer who first ran for mayor in 2021, said the “minimally invasive” surgery will attempt to stem the effects of degenerative arthritis from his “invincible paratrooper days.”

“It went from zero pain to constant pain,” Moreno, 56, of Brighton Heights, told TribLive Monday.

Moreno said he served as an Army paratrooper from 1986 to 1991, taking 36 jumps in full equipment. He was based in Panama and, during the Gulf War, in Germany.

The surgery has not been scheduled but Moreno said it will take place “sooner than later” — and definitely before the Nov. 4 general election.

This fall, Moreno is facing Democratic candidate Corey O’Connor, who serves as Allegheny County controller.

Moreno already faces an uphill battle to become mayor; registered Democrats in Pittsburgh dramatically outnumber their GOP counterparts.

Moreno said he will need to avoid “heavy walking” for a couple of weeks after the procedure. He likely will require about a month of physical rehabilitation.

“I’m going to get this done so I can hit things at 100%,” Moreno said Monday. “I will come back better. I’ll be the ‘Bionic Mayor’ now.”

Moreno first ran for mayor in the May 2021 Democratic primary, which was won by Ed Gainey. In that primary, Moreno simultaneously sought write-in votes for the Republican nomination, which he gained. He ran against Gainey in the November 2021 general election, losing with 28% of the vote.

This May, Moreno ran in the Republican primary for mayor, beating challenger Thomas West by a 3-1 margin.

Following that victory, a rift developed between Moreno and two of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s largest Republican committees, who are refusing to back him against O’Connor.