Barbara Lee has a big one on her side. She announced Thursday morning that former Vice President Kamala Harris \u2014 once a colleague of Lee\u2019s in Congress \u2014\u00a0has endorsed her run for reelection as Oakland\u2019s mayor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBarbara Lee has spent her life fighting for the people who too often get left out and left behind, and as Mayor, she is delivering for Oakland with the urgency, courage and integrity this moment demands,\u201d Harris said, according to a press release from Lee\u2019s camp.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom expanding affordable housing and improving public safety to investing in young people and protecting immigrant communities, Mayor Lee knows how to bring people together, get results and stand up to attacks on our values,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
In a press release touting her own accomplishments on crime, affordable housing, and illegal dumping, Lee said she\u2019s \u201cdeeply honored\u201d by Harris\u2019 support.<\/p>\n
The politicians have a history of boosting one another. Lee was a California co-chair<\/a> of Harris\u2019 2020 campaign for president, and again endorsed<\/a> her 2024 eleventh-hour, and ultimately unsuccessful, run after Joe Biden dropped out.\u00a0<\/p>\n Harris has deep ties<\/a> to Oakland and the broader Bay Area. She spent most of her childhood in Berkeley, lived in Oakland as a young adult beginning her career in the Alameda County District Attorney\u2019s Office, and later served as San Francisco DA.\u00a0<\/p>\n And Harris has proven popular in the East Bay. About 75% of voters<\/a> in Alameda County filled in a ballot bubble for Harris in 2024.<\/p>\n Grisham, Pechenuk, Robinson highlight endorsements, too<\/p>\n Harris may be the highest-profile endorser in the Nov. Oakland mayoral election so far, but numerous other politicians, community leaders, and local organizations have also made their preferences known in the race. And we\u2019re likely to see more stamps of approval in the coming weeks.\u00a0<\/p>\n Lee\u2019s reelection website lists dozens of endorsements<\/a>, highlighting those from State Sen. Jesse Arrregu\u00edn, five former Oakland mayors, several labor unions including SEIU 1021 and the Oakland firefighters\u2019 union, and more.<\/p>\n Brenda Grisham, a public safety advocate challenging Lee, has five detailed endorsement letters, mainly from local businesspeople, published on her website<\/a>.<\/p>\n Oakland-raised rapper Kamaiyah penned one.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter enduring the unimaginable loss of her child to gun violence, Brenda chose to turn her grief into purpose \u2014 fighting tirelessly to make sure no other family has to suffer the same pain,\u201d she wrote. \u201cHer vision centers on real solutions: investing in prevention, strengthening community resources, and creating safer neighborhoods where our children can thrive.\u201d<\/p>\n Candidate Mindy Pechenuk\u2019s website highlights three endorsements<\/a>: from state controller candidate Herb Morgan, the GOP Union Caucus, and former State Sen. Mike Morrell.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOakland deserves accountability, transparency, and real fiscal leadership,\u201d Morgan wrote in a social media post. \u201cMindy will clean up City Hall.\u201d<\/p>\n Candidate Julius Robinson doesn\u2019t appear to have a campaign website or public endorsement list.<\/p>\n