Loren Taylor takes a smaller lead in close special election for the mayor of Auckland

Auckland – Former City Councilman Loren Taylor took a very slim lead in his early results against former Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee on Tuesday, a recent match that has recently been a series of scandals that ultimately led to the November recall of the city’s mayor.

The game leading Northern California City is still too close to Tuesday night. But Taylor's strong early performance was the latest plot twist in a game, and many expected Lee to be a progressive idol who spent nearly 30 years in Congress' East Bay, easily winning after she announced her campaign in January.

Oakland is a city of 436,000 people with about 250,000 registered voters, using the ranking elections, which allows voters to select multiple candidates in order of priority. The end result may take several days to announce the title, but Taylor’s supporters have celebrated early results at a campaign gathering in downtown Oakland.

On the streets of Taylor's party, the night was still young, and Lee's hundreds of supporters remained optimistic when they danced live performances at the awards ceremony of the music venue in the city center. The official color of Auckland is green and gold balloons that decorate the room, while dozens of people form a long queue for a plate of soul food.

Lee also showed a tough tone during her speech at the party in a dark green suit and a golden shirt, where she spent more time thanking campaign supporters rather than talking about the results.

“We all know it's going to be a long week,” she said. “But we did a great job.”

The special election was triggered by the removal of Mayor Sheng Thao, recalled from his tenure in November, a deep frustration over the general meaning of crime, homelessness and Auckland’s crisis.

Thao, an elected progressiveist in 2022, has been fully criticized for failing to more actively resolve so-called smashing and robbery cases, car theft or demolishing the city's sprawling tent city. She also faces allegations of cheating on the city's financial situation, creating a terrible budget shortage this fiscal year that will almost certainly require substantial cuts in government departments.

In June, FBI agents attacked her home as part of an investigation into Thao's boyfriend's massive corruption program, involving Thao's boyfriend and a team of father and sons of a company that provides Oakland Regeneration Services, which has attacked her home in June. The survey makes the recall vibrant, and it's easy to pass over 60% of the votes. Thao, her boyfriend Andre Jones, and Andy and David Duong California Waste Solutions Being prosecuted Federal bribery fees In January. All four defendants pleaded not guilty.

Dan Lindheim, a former city administrator in Oakland, said Thao's strike combined with concerns about crime and the city's financial crisis has inspired deep resentment from government leaders about incompetence.

“People think things are out of control, plus this financial crisis,” said Lindheim, who recognizes Lee.

The election created unexpected career opportunities for Lee, who lost to Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, who left Washington in January and went on to win a seat in November. As Auckland suddenly needed a new mayor, a wide range of business groups, labor organizations and elected leaders, he summoned Lee, 78, to the special election and saved their city from collapse last fall.

Since announcing his campaign in January, Lee has been a veteran politician with decades of experience building connections between all interest groups with a united message. During her congress, she touted hundreds of millions of dollars she brought home to the East Bay, where she advocated anti-war policies and promoted legislation against racism, gender discrimination, poverty and labor exploitation. These values ​​stem from her roots as a Black Panther activist and her education and training at Mills College and UC Berkeley.

She promised to “improve life for everyone” in Auckland during the campaign, while vowing to fight crime and encouraging 5,400 homeless people in Auckland to enter shelters and housing. She has promised to hire more police officers, curb government spending and increase transparency to make decisions at the City Hall.

Taylor and Lee had only two candidates in a crowded field with 10 people, although one left the race in February to run for Lee. But the game is largely seen as a competition between Lee and Taylor and their competitive vision for Oakland.

Taylor has effectively exploited Lee's strengths through an active campaign strategy in recent weeks, which relies heavily on her strengths.

He often describes his hometown as “broken” and desperately needs a CEO on-site experience at the City Hall, where he can make tough decisions without worrying about long-term political supporters. Taylor, at 47, called on voters to be disillusioned by professional politicians who are looking for young people to lead their city into a new direction.

“People want their representations and positions in the representation of their representatives in the National Government,” said Keally McBride, Oakland resident and professor of politics at the University of San Francisco. “But when it comes to local governments, they just want things to work.”

He has received financial impetus from tech and business leaders who have put thousands of dollars into elections with the independent spending committee that supports his candidacy.

Taylor represented part of East Oakland in the city council for four years before barely losing to Thao in the 2022 mayoral election. In that game, Taylor led a few days, and then a wave of mail-in ballots drove the vote.