Oakland, in another world, the special election next week to find Oakland, a new mayor could have been an event of the best floor for a city that needs stable leadership.
Barbara Lee, the veteran of the Congress and the progressive icon of East Bay, versus Loren Taylor, a former member of the Council intelligence and a chip on her shoulder? It sounds like a real race, and recently the surveys indicate that it has become one.
Five days before the April 15 elections, however, participation is surprisingly low. Alameda County Electoral Officials said Thorsday who had received tickets by less than 14.5% or around 250,000 voters registered in Oakland.
For some context, participation throughout the county was 24% a week before the general elections last November. The two elections are not comparable and a fall was widely predictable. But the county voter registrar, Tim Dupuis, said that participation is “very low” compared to other recent elections.
With days to the end, the consequences of a high-profile corruption case that involves the former SHENG Thao reach seems to have eclipsed the public’s attention towards Lee-Taylor’s confrontation.
“People are fatigued,” said Ernestine Nettles, president of the Oakland Women’s Voting League. “They are skeptics of our city and its leaders … That is just the weather at this time.”
The election will choose a new mayor of a package of 10 candidates to complete Thao’s mandate until next November.
Voters will also decide on a measure of sales tax, according to city leaders, is crucial to help avoid a budgetary crisis. And the voters will occupy a seat of the Council of the City of Oakland in District 2 covered by Chinatown, Jack London Square and some areas to the south and east of Lake Merritt.
For voters who are not completing a ballot, these are some of the most important questions facing mayor’s careers as the needs of the election day.
What are the differences in policies between Lee and Taylor?
The race between the two favorites seems to be close, but during most of the electoral cycle they have found few notable policies on which they disagree. With less than usual, the discourse on careers has focused on broader political issues and the financial ties of candidates and their political history.
Both want more police officers in Oakland, at least 800, possible. The department is currently in around 680 oaths, thought that a measure approved by voters last November obtained the necessary package tax revenues in a minimum baseline of 700 police officers in the force.
Taylor said it can get faster than read, simply using money that would otherwise go to overtime from the officers. Lee speaks in a more restricted way about a plan to contract officers.
She is also much less interested in saving money for the city by saying goodbye to workers, which Taylor intimulates a lot like the “difficult choice” could only do when facing public labor unions that support their opponent.
In general terms, Lee has promised state and federal money that remains before the Trump administration, which could be a high task given the unprecedented cut of the president of the federal funds.
Lee has promoted its ability to generate investments in the city. Its launch is strengthened with its alliance with the City Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and donations of Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and the permanent CEO of Kaiser, Gregory Adams, companies based in Oakland.
How much will the new mayor influence the next city budget?
The candidates barely recognize this, but there is only a probable answer: probably not much. This could illuminate part of the urgency of the elections, since it is a budget deficit of $ 140 million that Oakland faces next year.
The member of the Kevin Jenkins Council, who serves as an interim mayor, is working on an expense proposal for the next two budget cycle of the city, which in an interview is now “95% complete.”
The mayor generally proposes the budget at some time in May so that the Council can amend and approve the finished plan before the next fiscal year in July begins.
Dupuis, the best county election official, would have up to 30 days after April 15 to sign the results of the elections.
In an interview, he thought, he said that the process could wrap much earlier if the three vote results are easy to determine and if the secretary of the city of Oakland, Asha Montaba, requests an earlier certification.
Then, the City Council could address the results of the elections at its next regular meeting, which could take a couple of additional weeks, because the counter cannot schedule a special session. And only after that a new mayor could swore.
Since Lee and Taylor advocate longer term financial analysis, since they requested municipal audits, and Taylor even proposes an extensive process of “zero -based budget”, it is more likely that their visions will not take Shap completely. By then, Oakland would be months after another choice of mayor.
Taylor insisted in an interview that at least amends would still be proposed to Jenkins’ plan after an office. Jenkins, meanwhile, said he is open to a discussion.
Will the vote of classified choice make any difference in the result of the elections?
Lee and Taylor are running in a field of 10 candidates that includes former Thao Renia Webb employee, former Olympic skier Elizabeth Swaney, the council employee of the Bay Area, Suz Robinson, the parallegal pull and four perpetal candidates.
Public exposure and wealthy financial sponsors have distinguished Lee and Taylor away from the pack. They headed face to face in a high profile debate last month and their supporters have launched negative advertising campaigns.
Even so, anyone who has lived in the elections of mayor of Last Oakland in 2022 remembers that the city’s classified option of Canape the result.
Under the city format version, a voter can classify up to five options. If no candidate ensures about 50% of the votes, then the candidate is eliminated in the last place and their votes are transferred respectively to those who voters listed as their next second option.
The process continues, around the round, until someone wins the majority.
Thao defeated Taylor in 2022 despite having votes in the place of Feer, largely due to the transfers of the victory of the fourth place Allysa. In the end, Thao beat Taylor for 677 votes.
In addition to Taylor and Lee, who have raised hundreds of thousands, no other candidate has raised $ 10,000 in contributions or has made a solid campaign. Lee and Taylor Par have not forged alliances with other candidates, as is typical in classified election careers.
But only a handful or transfers of votes could make a difference if the race is tight.