Nov 2020: Alameda County Measures, Judges, + Elected Officials (Federal-State-Special Districts)

Here are my recommendations on Alameda County’s measures plus elected officials from the federal down to county/district level.

Alameda County 

Measure V: Yes for Utility Users Tax Unincorporated areas

Measure W: YES YES YES for Housing and Services for People Suffering from Homelessness

Federal + State offices
President: Biden-Harris
U.S. Representative, 13th Congressional District: Barbara Lee
CA State Senator, 9th Senate District: Nancy Skinner
CA State Assembly, 15th Assembly District: Buffy Wicks
CA State Assembly, 18th Assembly District: Rob Bonta

Special Districts:

AC Transit At-Large: Chris Peeples

AC Transit Ward 1: Wallace

AC Transit Ward 2: Jean Walsh

BART District 1: Jamie Salcido

BART District 3: Rebecca Saltzman

BART District 7: Lateefah Simon

East Bay Regional Parks Ward 1: Elizabeth Echols

Plus (for all of you who ask me about Oakland every year), see below for a friend's recommendations. 

For details, read on ...

Alameda County Measure

V: Yes for Utility Users Tax Unincorporated areas

This measure would renew an existing 6.5% tax on utilities, levied only in unincorporated parts of the county. Because it is a general tax, it only requires a 50% vote, funds are deposited in the General Fund, and all county voters have a say. The County Board of Supervisors has a longtime policy to only spend this utility tax on services in those same unincorporated areas, and the Board unanimously put this on the ballot. For more, see SPUR’s endorsement and analysis, or Voter's Edge for impartial analysis. Only opposition is the Taxpayers’ Association. 

W: YES YES YES for Housing and Services for People Suffering from Homelessness

Measure W would provide funds the county commits to use for the Home Together 2020 Plan, providing housing and services for people suffering from homelessness. Funds would come from a new 0.5% sales tax, about $150 million/year for 10 years. While sales taxes are regressive, Measure W would spend its money in a very progressive fashion. Requires 50% to pass. 

Endorsements include a wide array of housing and homeless service groups (East Bay Housing Organizations, Wellstone Democratic Renewal Club), the entire Board of Supervisors, and lotsa Mayors (Oakland, Berkeley, Albany, Emeryville, etc.). For details, see SPUR’s in-depth analysis and endorsement or Voter’s Edge. Opposition argument is from the Taxpayers’ Association. 

Elected Officials - Federal + State

If you read my analysis, you’re probably already voting for these folks (even if some weren’t your *first* choice in the primary). If you have any questions, please ask me in comments or by email.  

President: Biden-Harris

U.S. Representative, 13th Congressional District: Barbara Lee

CA State Senator, 9th Senate District: Nancy Skinner

CA State Assembly, 15th Assembly District: Buffy Wicks

CA State Assembly, 18th Assembly District: Rob Bonta

Judges

Superior Court Judge, Office #2: Elena Condes

This is easy: I voted for Elena Condes in the March primary. She got the most votes, but not enough to avoid a runoff. I’ll vote for her again in November. 

Her ballot statement says: “As a trial attorney with 25 years of courtroom and as a Latina, lesbian, mother, defender and small business owner, I am running to enhance the diversity of experience and perspective on Alameda County Superior Court.” She’s endorsed by the outgoing Judge Carol Brosnahan (40-years! classmate of RBG!!), MANY judges, plus a bunch of elected officials I like. For a judge, I care more about legal endorsements than about the political ones. And Condes sounds more like my vision of what our judges need to be. 

Her opponent is the same one I decided against in March: Mark Fickes seems like a good guy -- 24 years of legal experience on a similarly wide range of topics. As his ballot statement says, he’s a gay man whose grandparents fled Nazi persecution. He’s endorsed by a few judges and by the Democratic Party. I’m a bit troubled that he lists his occupation as “Civil Rights Attorney”, when in fact he works in a general practice. I understand resume primping is standard operating procedure in politics, but I’d hoped not so much with judges. 

See Voter’s Edge for more details. 

Special Districts: AC Transit, BART, East Bay Regional Parks

AC Transit, like EVERY transit agency, is in trouble. COVID has decimated ridership and fares revenue, and the agency has new challenges to keep riders and drivers safe. Those mean new costs. It needs elected officials who understand the system and will have the judgement to challenge OR support management when needed. 

AC Transit Director, At-Large: Chris Peeples

Chris Peeples knows AC Transit as well as anyone. He’s been a rider and transit advocate for decades, a dedicated Director since 1997. He knows the finances and the operations. As an at-large representative, he represents 1.4 million people from Richmond to Fremont. He travels all over that district on the bus. He understands and advocates for the system’s importance to people who depend on transit; he’s been a strong force behind AC’s zero-emissions bus program. A friend who works at AC Transit says “Chris has been the heart and soul of the AC Transit Board for many years.” Someday he’ll have to retire, but this pandemic is not the right time. AC Transit needs Chris Peeples. 

One opponent is Dollene Jones, a former bus driver and perennial candidate who’s lost the past four times she’s run. She’s well-intentioned but ill-informed. 

The other opponent is Victoria Fierce, a housing activist who has put together a snappy website (plus ‘Fierce’, whatta name!). She’s got some ideas that *sound* good (plus some that the agency is already working on, and others that show she doesn’t know the agency very well). But I don’t see an indication that she understands their costs, or how to pay for them, or how to make them happen. She suggests a sales tax on rideshare, something AC Transit has no authority over. If she is serious about the idea, it would be nice to see her support (or comment on) Berkeley’s Measure GG -- which is a *city* putting a tax on rideshare, because it’s something a city can do (and AC Transit can’t). She also shows little evidence of understanding the whole district: she might’ve been better off running against Greg Harper in District 2. If she’s serious about AC Transit and learns some more about the agency she’d like to help govern, maybe she should challenge Joel Young in 2 years for the other At-Large seat.

AC Transit Director, Ward 1: Joe Wallace

This is a tough one -- three interesting candidates who’d bring important, but very different, characteristics to this post. Whoever *doesn’t* win for this seat, I hope they’ll consider running for the At-Large seat currently held by Joel Young in 2022. 

 

Incumbent Joe Wallace, currently Board President, was first elected in 2000. He’s from North Richmond, a very-poor unincorporated area next to the city of Richmond. A friend at AC Transit says “Board colleagues argue that Wallace has provided a useful working class perspective.” He can be prickly, but he’s been a bus rider all his life, he’s a passionate advocate for riders, and he has been effective. Lots of politicians trumpet their humble roots -- Joe is the real deal. That has come to mean something when AC Transit goes to Sacramento and Washington for money. I like Joe and I'd like to see him continue to represent me at AC Transit. 

You may remember Richmond Councilmember Jovanka Beckles from her 2018 race for Assembly District 15. For this election, she was recruited to run by AC Transit’s union. She frames public transit as a public good (yay!) and says the right things about what system we should have (though she shows the same lack of recognition as Fierce that AC Transit has no ability to ‘tax the super rich’). And she has a bunch of labor and left electeds’ endorsements. I’m torn: I remember in 2018 being concerned about how she worked poorly with others on the Richmond City Council. But an AC Transit friend (and endorser) says some on AC Transit staff hope ‘Beckles can help energize the Board and build its political clout.’ 

Ben Fong is what one friend refers to as ‘the nerds’ candidate.’ He’s a transportation professional, he has worked on promoting ‘transportation demand management’ (he’s right, it’s a good thing). He’s got endorsements from a lot of wonky pro-transit people, including many I respect. If he won, he’d have great ideas, and I’m sure he’d contribute well on the Board. But he doesn’t pack the oomph of Beckles or the roots of Wallace. 

And finally, I think it is important for Richmond to have representation on AC Transit’s Board, and I'd like to continue to see a strong Black voice on the Board. I'm voting for Joe Wallace. 

Updated 10/28/2020: When I sat down with my mom to vote, I decided to vote for Joe Wallace. Feel free to contact me for more details. 

AC Transit Director, Ward 2: Jean Walsh

I trust my friend Nathan Landau, who works at AC Transit:

“Neighborhood activist (and bus rider) Jean Walsh is running against long time incumbent Greg Harper. Harper was expected to step down but decided at the last minute to stay in. Harper is a bitter presence on the Board and is particularly hostile to the agency’s unions, including mine. Ward 2 is core territory for AC Transit, it deserves creative and positive representation in this difficult time.”

 Here's Jean's website, including endorsements from many people I trust. 

BART, District 1: Jamie Salcido

District 1 runs from Martinez through Pleasant Hill and Walnut Creek and down the 680 corridor to San Ramon. If you know people in that district, tell them to vote for Jamie! 

Jamie Salcido has a background in urban design, has been a transportation commissioner, and would be a tremendous improvement over the incumbent BART Director for District 1, Debora Allen. Jamie has a good platform and endorsements from 6 of the 8 other BART directors (and many others). 

That’s because Allen has been a toxic presence on the Board. She raised a firestorm when she denied that BART police have murdered people (hello -- Oscar Grant!). She often seems more bent on tearing the district down than governing it -- she even voted against endorsing Prop 15 even though it would bring millions per year to BART. And she’s opposed affordable housing around BART stations. Allen must go. 

BART, District 3: Rebecca Saltzman

Rebecca has no opposition, so we won’t see her on your ballot. Congratulations, Rebecca, and keep up the good work!

BART, District 7: Lateefah Simon

Lateefah Simon is stupendous. Legally blind, she’s never driven a car and depends on public transit. She’s a badass racial justice and civil rights advocate. She’s a MacArthur “Genius” fellow. Remember when John Lewis died, and you kept hearing his quote about “good trouble” -- Lateefah Simon gets in good trouble. She’s also effective, enough that her BART Board colleagues elected her President this year. She’s promoting police reform by (among other things) increasing use of BART’s unarmed safety staff -- naturally BART’s police union doesn’t like that. And she’s good on other issues -- housing, parking, access to stations.  Endorsements -- she’s got ‘em. Vote for Lateefah -- heck, you could even contribute to her campaign. BTW -- here’s a map of District 7 - hugging the shore from Richmond through Berkeley to San Francisco.

Her opponent Sharon Kidd was endorsed by BART’s police union and appears to be running in part because Lateefah didn’t reappoint Kidd to BART’s Police Citizen Review Board in 2017. She’s got nothing on Lateefah. 

East Bay Regional Parks District, Ward 1: Elizabeth Echols

Incumbent Elizabeth Echols was appointed to this seat when Whitney Dotson stepped down. She has a long history of public service, in the Obama + Clinton administrations and in California, plus at an environmental nonprofit. On EBRPD she focuses on access for underserved communities, combating climate change, addressing wildfire risks, and recruiting a diverse workforce. She has a broad range of endorsements.

Challenger Norman LaForce is, as my friend Nathan says, “an environmental scrapper, who often irritates both his friends and his enemies.” When LaForce ran against Dotson in 2008, I worried that LaForce’s brusque and abrasive style would hamper his effectiveness if he were elected (and I endorsed Dotson). I haven’t worked with LaForce for many years, but apparently his style hasn’t changed. Stick with Echols.

Oakland Candidates + Measures

Every election, many of you ask me about Oakland candidates and measures. My TransForm colleague Edie Irons and her mom write up endorsements for Oakland and other areas. I don’t always agree, but I always respect their thinking and concise writeups. 

Note: post updated 10/14: Norman LaForce only lost to Whitney Dotson once, in 2008, not twice as I'd written at first.