Barbara Lee has avid fans in Oakland mayor's race. But Loren Taylor is making it a contest

OAKLAND — On a caller Saturday successful March, respective 100 radical filled the Grand Lake Theatre successful Oakland for a quintessential enactment to grant longtime Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee.

Oakland’s Youth Poet Laureate Ella Gordon recited a almighty poem astir the magic of surviving successful the divers East Bay city, portion performances from Destiny Muhammad, a.k.a. the Harpist from the Hood, and young dancers successful the African Queens Dance Company ignited the venue with the benignant of soulful, grassroots vigor for which this municipality is renowned.

Lee, 78, near Washington, D.C., successful January aft losing her bid for Senate successful past year’s superior to chap Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, who went connected to triumph the spot successful November. The nonaccomplishment seemed a muffled decision to her astir 3 decades successful Congress, wherever her antiwar positions and enactment for civilian rights made her a hometown leader backmost successful Oakland.

The March 8 lawsuit was nary status party, however, but a large fundraiser for Lee’s adjacent venture: moving for Oakland mayor.

In a twist of destiny that could extremity up re-energizing Lee’s governmental career, Oakland recovered itself successful request of a caller main enforcement aft voters successful November recalled Mayor Sheng Thao. The ouster underscored residents’ frustrations with brazen thoroughfare crime, sprawling structure cities and a wide consciousness that Thao, a progressive elected successful 2022, didn’t person solutions.

Further clouding her exit: Federal officials successful January announced that Thao had been indicted connected bribery charges, on with her fellow and a father-son squad who tally the institution that provides Oakland’s recycling services, alleging a corruption strategy involving currency payments and run enactment successful speech for metropolis contracts. All 4 defendants person pleaded not guilty.

In the decennary starring up to the pandemic, Oakland had emerged arsenic a fashionable alternate to San Francisco, with a youthful downtown, much affordable lodging and high-energy nightlife. But the metropolis has struggled to retrieve from the COVID-era shutdowns. A surge successful spot crimes and “smash-and-grab” robberies drove immoderate high-profile businesses to permission town. Between 2022 and 2024, the fig of radical surviving connected the streets, successful vehicles oregon abandoned buildings accrued by 10%. In 2023, homicides topped 100 for the 4th consecutive year.

So, for her service of avid devotees, it was a profound alleviation erstwhile Lee announced successful aboriginal January that she would tally for politician successful the April 15 peculiar election.

“I’m ever acceptable to combat for Oakland,” Lee said successful announcing her bid.

Her run has been endorsed by a wide conjugation of elected officials, concern groups, labour unions and religion leaders who support she is the close pistillate for the moment, with the condemnation and acquisition needed to unify residents.

“We request her. She doesn’t request us,” Interim Mayor Kevin Jenkins told the assemblage astatine the March event.

“I’m ever acceptable to combat for Oakland,” erstwhile U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee said successful announcing she was moving for mayor.

(Loren Elliott / For The Times)

Lee’s entranceway into the contention helped bladed what what had been a crowded tract of candidates considering a run. Many expected Lee would person an casual way to victory. Why basal successful her way?

But punching astatine that mindset is Loren Taylor, a mean Democrat who represented portions of East Oakland for 4 years connected the City Council earlier narrowly losing to Thao successful the 2022 mayoral election. Though 9 candidates successful full stay successful the race, lone Taylor has emerged arsenic a formidable challenger to Lee.

Taylor, a 47-year-old concern absorption advisor with a master’s grade successful biomedical engineering, has attracted wide support, including from the concern assemblage and among tech entrepreneurs, for his absorption connected nationalist information and bringing bully governance backmost to Oakland.

“We person a batch of things that request to beryllium fixed, and request to beryllium fixed immediately,” Taylor said astatine a caller debate.

Their candidacies contiguous voters with a provocative choice: Should Oaklanders take a seasoned nationalist servant who delivered for the territory during her decades successful the nation’s capital? Or a scrappy person 31 years her inferior who is immersed successful section issues and knows the interior workings of City Hall?

Underscoring their differences are the slogans each has chosen: Lee promotes herself arsenic idiosyncratic who tin “unify” Oakland. Taylor says his purpose is to “fix” what’s broken.

When Lee declared her candidacy, Taylor figured helium had 2 options.

The archetypal was to perceive to the slew of radical who tried to transportation him to basal down, Taylor said successful a February interview: “Basically hold my crook and let for her to descent into this seat.”

The 2nd was to subordinate the naysayers and enactment successful the race. “All right, if she’s in, it’ll beryllium tough,” helium said of his thinking. “But also, if she’s in, is that truly what’s champion for Oakland?”

Both Taylor and Lee person vowed to marque warring transgression a priority, arsenic good arsenic helping the estimated 5,400 stateless radical successful Oakland find structure and housing. They’ve pledged to rein successful authorities spending successful the look of a fund deficit. And they’ve touted policies to summation transparency arsenic a mode to rebuild nationalist trust.

But Taylor argues determination are differences that abstracted the two. For one, they travel from antithetic generations. Though some are Democrats, Taylor describes himself arsenic much mean and doesn’t shy from a pro-law enforcement stance, saying the metropolis needs to prosecute much than 100 much constabulary officers.

He’ll often accidental Lee was a large subordinate of Congress — but 1 of 435 members successful the House. In contrast, helium said, helium knows the hustle and grind of being a section authoritative successful it for the agelong slog. He’s targeted Lee’s refusal to accidental publically whether she plans to tally for reelection successful 2026.

“I deliberation the question that needs to beryllium asked is, each right, bash we privation a 78-year-old vocation person who has not shown a past of making the hard, hard decisions?” helium said. “Or bash we privation a 47-year-old governmental outsider who has been connected the ground, moving wrong City Hall, crossed aggregate stakeholder groups, demonstrating the quality to lick these hard problems, and is committed to being present beyond conscionable 20 months?”

Lee told The Times this period that her determination to tally for reelection would beryllium up to the voters, and whether they deliberation she has done a bully capable job. Taylor’s disapproval has incensed her supporters, who accidental helium is disrespecting 1 of Oakland’s heroes.

“For nary existent reason, our congresswoman is nether onslaught erstwhile she is doing a sacrificial thing,” City Councilmember Carroll Fife said astatine the March event. “This is Barbara Lee. Put immoderate respect connected her name.”

“I’ve watched her bash things that precise fewer politicians tin do,” U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon, a Democrat who was elected to Lee’s erstwhile spot successful November, added successful a caller telephone interrogation from Washington. “Barbara tin prime up the telephone and telephone to get done to everyone.”

Simon noted the hundreds of millions of dollars successful backing Lee brought to the territory from Washington, and however she was consenting to enactment crossed the aisle with Republicans and bring unneurotic labour and concern for negotiations. She’s championed policies that targeted racism, sexism, poorness and labour exploitation, values that stemmed from her acquisition arsenic a Black Panther activistic and her acquisition grooming astatine Mills College and UC Berkeley.

“Oakland is successful a crisis,” Simon said. “This is not a job-training opportunity. You request idiosyncratic with local, state, regional, nationalist and planetary relationships with different lawmakers, the nationalist and backstage sectors, to get things successful shape.”

Does enraging Lee’s backers — who span influential involvement groups — interest Taylor?

“I did not get into this nationalist work relation to play it harmless and to marque fractional commitments to my city,” helium said. “I deliberation that’s 1 of the problems that we have, is that excessively galore radical are factoring their ain governmental vocation alternatively of what’s champion for the constituents that they are serving.”

Taylor’s boldness has earned him respect among Oaklanders who privation to spot a much assertive attack to the city’s problems.

“He’s pragmatic astir delivering results, not conscionable the ‘blah blah blah,’” said erstwhile City Councilmember Patricia Kernighan. “He already is steeped successful these issues, helium knows what the facts are. He knows each the players. It’s crunch time.”

“It’s a precise wide city, which is good, but sometimes it causes folks to suffer show of communal sense,” said Bob Cross, 1 of astir 2 twelve radical who spent a caller Sunday door-knocking for Taylor. “Barbara Lee has done a bully occupation successful Washington. But she has ne'er been portion of metropolis government.”

Taylor has amazed his skeptics aft gaining momentum successful caller weeks. In aboriginal March, helium reported a flimsy fundraising pb compared to Lee. Mid-month, his run released a canvass showing he’s connected way to garner 41% of first-place votes compared to Lee’s 45%. (Oakland utilizes a ranked-choice voting strategy that allows voters to prime aggregate candidates by bid of preference.)

Still, it’s nary casual feat to tally against a pistillate who has won much than a twelve races, astir of them by wide margins. During her past legislature run successful 2022, Lee won with much than 90% of the vote.

During a Sunday successful mid-March, Taylor worked his mode down a enactment of cozy homes successful eastbound Oakland connected a door-knocking ngo to whip up votes. He paused to present himself to an older antheral retired walking his dogs.

The antheral listened earlier politely telling Taylor helium was going to ballot for Lee.

“I’ve been voting for her for years,” helium said. Taylor nodded, smiling patiently. “I’ve voted for Barbara Lee arsenic well,” helium responded. But what Oakland needs close now, helium explained, is idiosyncratic with a way grounds connected section issues.

“You’re precocious up connected my list. You’re successful the apical two, let’s say,” the antheral responded. “Obviously you won’t beryllium a atrocious choice.”

“I did not get into this nationalist work relation to play it harmless and to marque fractional commitments to my city,” Loren Taylor said of his determination to tally for Oakland mayor.

(Yalonda M. James / San Francisco Chronicle)

It was the aforesaid astatine a location down the thoroughfare with a “Barbara Lee” motion successful the yard. Taylor thought it could inactive beryllium worthy a visit.

The pistillate who opened the doorway seemed genuinely excited to spot Taylor: “Loren, ohio my goodness!” she said. She, too, listened arsenic Taylor launched into his pitch, earlier issuing her verdict: “Barbara is my miss ... I treasure her.”

“You know, I respect you, too, Loren,” she added. He thanked her and turned backmost down the driveway.

“That is the earthy default. Those are the headwinds we are facing,” Taylor said.

But it wasn’t each rejections. One pistillate hollered astatine Taylor from crossed the thoroughfare and came moving down her driveway to speech with him, sharing that she and her husband, a firefighter, planned to ballot for him. At different house, a antheral said Taylor could number connected his vote.

In galore ways, the March 8 run lawsuit for Lee was a motion to Taylor’s unexpected strength. Tucked into the speeches lauding Lee’s accomplishments, much than 1 protagonist called retired Taylor for having the gall to spell aft her.

“We request to combat backmost against attacks connected her,” Jenkins, the interim mayor, said to applause.

Lee, capping disconnected the ceremony, stuck to her unity message: “I privation america to determination forward. And I privation america to determination guardant with a batch of emotion and a batch of committedness to this city,” she said. “We person our differences of opinion. We travel unneurotic for 1 reason, and that’s to marque beingness amended for everybody, and I mean everybody.”

For those who knock her background, her clip successful Washington, adjacent her age, she isn’t bothered.

“Criticism is good successful a campaign,” she told The Times. “But judge me, I cognize this metropolis precise well. I’ve been a nonmigratory here. I unrecorded here, and I’ve delivered for this city.”