Barbara Lee was supposed to be a lock for Oakland mayor. Why is the race so close?

OAKLAND, California — Barbara Lee’s homecoming run for Oakland mayor had all the markings of a blowout: Political power players swiftly united behind Lee, a progressive icon in her staunchly blue town, as she pledged to move the city past rancorous recalls.

But her dominant position is now being turned against her.

Lee’s unexpectedly tight contest against a more moderate former city official will test whether the former lawmaker’s towering stature can overcome the anti-status-quo fervor that has driven Democrats out of office since the pandemic, often putting progressives like Lee on the defensive. Now, amid a confluence of crises culminating in the November recalls of the city’s mayor and district attorney, her opponent Loren Taylor is trying to pull off a major upset in an April 15 special election by capitalizing on seething voter discontent.

“Things have gotten worse, not better, in Oakland over the last many years, and whenever that dynamic occurs it’s a change election,” said John Whitehurst, a political consultant and veteran of Oakland politics who is not working for either candidate. “The heart of the progressive movement beats in (Lee). Everyone thought she’d be a bench-clearer. Not the case — she’s been successfully tagged with the failures of the past.”





https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/06/barbara-lee-tight-oakland-mayors-race-00270119