Oakland Mayoral Race: Barbara Lee Accepts Victory With “Responsibility, Humility and Love”

As a candidate for mayor, former U.S. Representative Barbara Lee released a “10-point plan” last week to reassure residents that she will tackle Oakland’s most pressing challenges.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌ ‌|‌ ‌California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌

As a candidate for mayor, former U.S. Representative Barbara Lee released a “10-point plan” last week to reassure residents that she will tackle Oakland’s most pressing challenges.

Now that she has edged out her competitors in the ranked-choice special election with 50% or more of the vote, the former Congresswoman, who represented parts of the Bay Area in the U.S. House of Representatives, can put her vision in motion as the city’s first Black woman mayor.

“I accept your choice with a deep sense of responsibility, humility, and love. Oakland is a deeply divided City,” Lee said in an April 19 statement. “I answered the call to run to unite our community, so that I can represent every voter, and we can all work together as One Oakland to solve our most pressing problems.”

As of April 18, Lee had secured 47,045 votes (50.0%), while Loren Manuel Taylor trailed her with 42,276 (44.9%) votes, according to Alameda County election results. Lee and Taylor were among 10 candidates who vied for the office after embattled former mayor, Sheng Thao, was recalled in November.

On Saturday evening, Taylor conceded to Lee. There are still about 300 Vote-by-Mail ballots left to be verified, according to county election officials. The ballots will be processed on April 21 and April 22.

“This morning, I called Congresswoman Barbara Lee to congratulate her on becoming the next Mayor of Oakland,” Taylor said in a statement.

“I pray that Mayor-Elect Lee fulfills her commitment to unify Oakland by authentically engaging the 47% of Oaklanders who voted for me and who want pragmatic, results-driven leadership.”

The influential Oakland Post endorsed Lee’s campaign, commending her leadership on the local, state, and federal levels. 

Paul Cobb, The Post’s publisher, told California Black Media that Lee will bring back “respect and accountability” to the mayor’s office.

“She is going to be a collegial leader drawing on the advice of community nonprofit organizations and those who have experience in dealing with various issues,” Cobb said. “She’s going to try to do a consensus-building thing among those who know the present problems that face the city.” 

Cobb continued, “I also think she has the one thing that the previous leaders didn’t – the willingness to want to work with (Alameda) county to solve social issues like homelessness and housing because the county has the resources and the budget.” 

Born in El Paso, Texas, Lee’s family moved to California while she was in high school. At 20 years old, Lee divorced her husband after the birth of her first child. After the split, Lee went through a tough period, becoming homeless and having to apply for public assistance to make ends meet. 

But destitution did not deter the young woman. 

Lee groomed herself to become an activist and advocate in Oakland and committed to standing up for the most vulnerable citizens in her community. 

Lee traveled to Washington, D.C. to work for then U.S. Congressman Ron Dellums after receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree from Mills College in Oakland in 1973. Lee later won a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) fellowship to attend the School of Social Welfare, and she earned a Master of Social Work from the University of California-Berkeley in 1975. 

Lee later served in the California State Assembly and State Senate before she was elected to Congress in 1998 to represent California’s 9th District, which includes parts of Berkeley and Oakland. 

After serving in the U.S. Congress for more than 25 years, Lee ran unsuccessfully for California’s U.S. Senate in the 2024 primary election. 

Lee joins current Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass and former San Francisco Mayor London Breed as Black women serving as chief executives of major cities in California over the last few years. 

“For the past 100 days — as I have for the past 30 years — I worked hard every day to continue to earn your trust, your respect, and your vote,” Lee said in the April 19 press release. “I couldn’t be prouder of the margin of our collective win and our amazing coalition.”

In an April 10 press release, Lee said she expects to improve public safety, find effective solutions to address homelessness, and revitalize the city’s economic state in her first 100 days in office.

According to the United States Census, Oakland’s population was 436,504 in July 2023, a decrease of 4,165 since April 2020. The Black population makes up 21.1% of the city’s residents compared to the city of Los Angeles’s 8.5%. As it has all over the state, homelessness has risen considerably in Oakland over the last decade. 

Cobb said that Lee’s work governing will take patience from the community. She not only has to repair the city’s image but also, “like the Betty Wright song, ‘Cleanup Woman,’ she’ll have to clean up the mess that was left behind,” Cobb said. 

“That’s the role of Black women in politics – arriving to clean up the mess that was left by others,” Cobb said. “But I believe she can do both, repair and clean up some of the internal bureaucratic messes, while branching out to do things that others did not dare to do or did not care to do.” 

Lee stated that she met with voters “every day in their living rooms, at their doors and at community events,” to hear their concerns and hardships of living in a city that once had three professional sports teams that were drawing revenue.  

Part of her 10-point plan includes directing the City Council to develop a budget that puts Oakland on solid financial footing. She also wants to establish stronger links between the leadership of the City’s police department and business leaders to keep the city safe.

Another priority for Lee is deploying vegetation management crews to clear hazards in high fire danger zones to help protect residents and property from the growing threat of wildfires.

“I hear them loud and clear – they want a mayor who can make Oakland safer, address the fiscal crisis, and root out corruption,” Lee stated. “Together, we can build a safer, vibrant Oakland that works for everyone. This is our moment to reimagine what’s possible for our beloved city.”