Vol. VI, No. 1,380
—Two Oakland Unified School District incumbents seeking re-election this fall were denied a potentially important endorsement Sunday after failing to secure enough support from the Alameda County Democratic Party.
The Alameda County Democratic Central Committee made no endorsement in the District 2 race involving Trustee Jennifer Brouhard or the District 6 contest featuring Trustee Valarie Bachelor after no candidate reached the required 60 percent threshold.
In District 4, however, challenger Kathryn Camp secured the party’s endorsement over incumbent Trustee Mike Hutchinson.
The results leave three sitting Oakland school board members without the local Democratic Party endorsement heading into the final stretch before the Nov. 3 election.
For Brouhard and Bachelor, the setback comes despite support from the Oakland Education Association and other progressive organizations. East Bay DSA, for example, has endorsed both incumbents for re-election.
—The endorsement fight also comes as OUSD’s stewardship and financial condition is emerging as an issue in the school board campaigns.
At Sunday’s endorsement meeting, Brouhard and Bachelor emphasized what they viewed as progress during their terms while acknowledging that challenges remain.
“I’m proud of what we accomplished,” Bachelor told Central Committee members, “but there’s much work to do.”
There were already signs last week that the incumbents could face difficulty winning the party’s backing when neither Brouhard nor Bachelor landed on the Central Committee’s consent calendar, which would have put them on a clear path toward the endorsement.
Their challengers then sought to capitalize. Supporters of Arielle Fleischer in District 2 and Alexandra Williams in District 6 encouraged members either to support the challengers or withhold their votes from the incumbents — effectively trying to keep anyone from reaching the 60 percent threshold.
The strategy succeeded.
With no Democratic Party endorsement in two races and an incumbent losing the endorsement battle in a third, Sunday’s votes set up a more competitive final stretch in contests that could reshape the makeup of the Oakland school board.
ELECTION 2026: AC Dems Deny Endorsement to Incumbent Joel Young in Competitive AC Transit Race
COUNTY NEWS: $30 Minimum Wage Measure Returns to Alameda County Supervisors for an Election Date
Port of Oakland Agree to Exploratory ENA With Oakland Roots for Waterfront Grounds
Airport Staff Backs Roots’ Temporary Alameda Stadium—With Conditions
STATE NEWS: Newsom Signs East Bay Lawmakers’ Bills, Including Help for Illegal Dumping and Bike Lanes
CAMPAIGN FINANCE: Form 497 large campaign contributions filed on Sept. 14
