The Oakland mayoral race will probably be one of the more interesting races to watch in 2010. As such, it is important that young voters get to know the facts about the candidates and learn the issues that important to each candidate. Here at EBYD, we have not endorsed a candidate for this position (yet). So here are the people running and places where you can learn more about what they want to do for Oakland.
***Oakland’s First Mayoral Forum***
There will be a mayoral forum in Oakland on Thursday, June 10th at the First Unitarian Church at 685 14th St. in Oakland. You can RSVP at the Facebook page.
All three candidates should be there and it would be a great chance to learn about all three and hear them debate on the best way to bring Oakland forward.
In the Oakland Mayoral Race, there are three main contenders for the city’s top position:
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Don Perata – Former State Senate President – www.perata4mayor.com
Don Perata is a candidate from the “Old Guard”. And i mean that in a loving way. He has a lot of support from the business community and will likely fight Kaplan for support from Labor. Don Perata has been working the neighborhood scene with gusto. Almost every other week, he holds a neighborhood meeting or “town hall” (he likes to call them “community conversations”) to discuss his vision for Oakland. Don Perata will hold his next community meeting on Wednesday, May 26th at 7pm in the Glenview/Diamond Heights District at 4101 Park Blvd., Oakland. Visit his website for more info. |
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Jean Quan – Oakland City Councilmember, District 4 – www.jeanquanforoakland.org
Jean Quan is leaving her City Council position to run for Mayor. She spent many years as a well liked member of the Oakland School Board. She has been trying to distinguish herself as the “Education Candidate” in this mayor race. She currently has no events in the coming weeks to speak of. |
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Rebecca Kaplan – Oakland City Councilmember, At-Large – www.kaplanformayor.org
Rebecca Kaplan has a wave of enthusiasm behind her. She is young and a political newbie compared to the other two candidates. Only recently (2008) was she elected to her current position as Oakland’s only At-Large councilmember. Before that she served on the AC Transit Board. Rebecca will have a fundraiser on Thursday, June 3rd at the Bench & Bar in Downtown Oakland. The cost is only $25. You can RSVP at her Facebook event page. |
This should be VERY interesting – Experience vs. fresh ideas. Representing very diverse constituants. Let’s hope questions to candidates will be thought provokingl AND require thoughtful responses.
This is definitely one of the races to watch in the Bay Area, especially as Oakland grapples with high unemployment rates. We need a leader who can help bring Oakland forward, not just as a “model city”, but as a modern city.
Great blog post.Really looking forward to read more.
let’s remember, please, that jean quan’s inadequate handling of funds while serving on on the OUSD Board caused the 60 million dollar loss that precipitated the state’s decision to take over the district.
let’s remember also that jean quan co-wrote measure Y — the very measure she now claims is causing the bulk of the city’s budget gap. never mind that measure Y is an epic fail, the police numbers were never met in any meaningful way.
she’ll always deny rather than take responsibility for her errors and bad decisions.
she dips into the general fund without transparency to the public she is sworn to serve
she’ll be the first to raise taxes and fees, because to her way of thinking, the way to solve a problem is to throw money at it, then “lose” that money and go begging for more money from the tax payers
her hubris knows no bounds: listen to the way she speaks about “her district” her people” “her city”
she’s the LAST council member who should be in charge of the city’s finances and yet there she is on the front lines of the city’s finance committee, making bad decisions that cause taxpayers to pay ever more
do not vote for jean quan unless you welcome a 30-47% increase in taxes and fees over the course of her term.
Jean Quan’s election to mayor of Oakland is a travesty to our entire elective process, not to mention the fact that we have lost the most powerful and influential politition in the state of California. I have sat next to Jean Quan in District Advisory Council meetings before her days of the ebonics embarassment and her trip to Washington DC and I felt from the moment I met her that she is out for her own fame over anything else. She is, in my eyes, in love with herself. Anyone who thinks that they need someone with her style and ways to speak for the good people of Oakland is brain dead to say the least. She has no basis for knowledge of anything outside of Chinatown, and I dont say that because I am white. I married and my children were born in Hawaii. I see another embarassment bestowing Oakland at the hands of Jean Quan. Lord help me become blind so I dont have to witness another lame duck session of mayor of Oakland.
I just posted a negative comment to Jean Quans election and got a reply that said ” I already said that ” when I have never been on this site before, must be more of Quans election tactics, hah!