OAKLAND VOTERS HEAD to the polls Tuesday for a special election to select a new mayor, city councilmember and decide the fate of a half-cent sales tax proposal.
The election was called after former mayor Sheng Thao lost a recall election and the former Oakland City Council member for District 2, Nikki Fortunato Bas, was elected to the Alameda County Board of Supervisors last November.
In December of 2024, the City Council placed the sales tax proposal, Measure A, on the ballot in an effort to help tackle Oakland’s on-going budget shortfall, which is estimated at $280 million over the next two-year budget cycle.
The frontrunners in the mayoral contest are presumed to be Barbara Lee, who served as the city’s U.S. Congressional representative from 1998 to 2025, and Loren Taylor, a former city councilmember and founder of the well-connected political advocacy organization Empower Oakland.
Taylor previously ran for mayor against Thao in 2022 and narrowly lost the election to her by less than 700 votes after nine rounds of ranked-choice voting.
A third-generation Oaklander, Taylor has a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Connecticut and an MBA from University of California at Berkeley’s Haas School of Business.
In addition to her Congressional career, Lee also served in the California State Assembly for 6 years and the State Sente for two. She earned an undergraduate degree from Mills College in Oakland and a master’s degree in social work from UC Berkeley.
The other candidates on the ballot include President Donald Trump enthusiast Mindy Pechenuk and frequent entrant Peter Liu, former Olympian/comedian and barista Elizabeth Swaney, former Thao advisor Renia Webb, Bay Area Council vice president Suz Robinson, a woman named President Christina Grappo — who describes herself as a “provider” on her official ballot designation, paralegal Tyron Jordan, who said he’s suspended his campaign to support Lee, and union factory worker Eric Simpson.
Measure A: Half-cent tax would boost city budget
The other election in which every Oakland voter can weigh in on is the one featuring Measure A.
If approved, it would increase Oakland’s sales tax from 10.25 percent to 10.75 percent to raise between $20 million and $30 million annually for the next 10 years.
The council voted 6-0 to place the measure on the ballot with then-councilmember Carroll Fife and councilmember Janani Ramachandran excused.
The tax “will help stabilize our finances and prevent further erosion in city services, so without the added revenue Oakland will be forced to do deeper cuts that threaten critical community programs such as public safety, cultural arts, human services and undermining the city’s quality of life and economic vitality,” said Councilmember Kevin Jenkins at the time.
Jenkins is now serving as interim mayor until the winner of Tuesday’s election begins their term.
Six in running for open council seat
The district 2 election to replace Bas features six candidate to represent the area east of Lake Merritt and south of Piedmont.
The candidates are property manager Paula Thomas, Rev. Kenneth Anderson, restaurateur and local businessperson Kanitha Matoury, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency employee Charline Wang, housing policy advocate Kara Murray Badal and financial planner Harold Lowe III.
On April 15, the Registrar’s Office and voting centers will be open for voting in person from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
People can find the nearest voting center on the county’s website. Voters can drop off completed ballots at the “ballot drop stop” at 1225 Fallon Street in Oakland or any one of the vote centers within the County of Alameda.
The ACVote website also has a map showing the county’s 24-hour ballot drop box locations.
More information about the special election and results can be found online, or call the Alameda County Registrar of Voters’ Office at (510) 272-6973.