Mayor of the Year

Every year, the Pennsylvania State Mayors' Association (PSMA) invites officials of the municipalities of its member Mayors to consider whether their Mayors have had a significant impact upon their communities and are worthy of the title "Mayor of the Year." Nominees are expected to be leaders in their municipalities and have extraordinary accomplishments. The 2026 Mayor of the Year is..

Dwan B. Walker
Mayor of the City of Aliquippa

The Pennsylvania State Mayors' Association is pleased to announce the 2026 Mayor of the Year is Dwan B. Walker, Mayor of the City of Aliquippa in rural Beaver County.  As the city's first black Mayor, Mayor Walker has brought pride and prestige to his community and city.

 A lifelong resident of Aliquippa and graduate of Aliquippa High School, Mayor Walker graduated from Robert Morris University, where he also was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Humanities in 2021.

Siince taking office in 2012, Mayor Walker has been a tireless advocate for his city.  He works at every city-wide clean up and recycling event, volunteers at other city events, promotes transparency in all financial transactions, has an open-door policy to all city residents and works to build close community ties among city residents through respect for all, a firm approach to crime prevention and mitigation and a commitment to "One Aliquippa, All Hands-on Deck."    

 Mayor Walker has won numerous high-profile awards including the Beaver County NAACP 20th Annual Human Rights award, Talk Magazine’s 2017 101 Influential Pennsylvanians, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. "Coordinator Award," the Dignity and Respect Champion Award, The Jefferson Award for Community Service, the 50 Men of Excellence Award, the Black History Achievement Award, and the 2024 Mayor of the Year Award presented by Perfect Love, Inc. 

 He serves on several non-for-profit boards including the Aliquippa Economic Development Corp., The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, the BJAB Criminal Justice Advisory Board and the Community College of Beaver County.

 Mayor Walker's greatest achievement as Mayor was his administration's efforts to rebuild the City of Aliquippa by bringing job training, social services, new businesses and corporate partnerships to the city.  Aliquippa and the Aliquippa Economic Development Corporation were awarded a $3.3 million grant to assist with these efforts.  Through this work, a 36-year distressed city designation was finally removed in 2023.

 Please join the Pennsylvania State Mayors' Association in congratulating Mayor Dwan B. Walker as the PSMA 2026 Mayor of the Year.     

 


Information letter to nominate Mayor of the Year

Nominating Form for the Mayor of the Year

View the previous Mayor of the Year winners