Bay Area

2024 Primary Election Candidates for Alameda County Board of Supervisors District 5 Seat

Nine candidates have filed to run for the Alameda County District 5 Board of Supervisors seat in the March 2024 primary election race to replace current chair Keith Carson who announced his retirement in December. Carson has held the Board position for over 30 years and initially intended to run for re-election but later expressed in a statement that it was time for him to move on from the job.

Published

3 months ago

January 23, 2024

Oakland Post

It didn’t take long for candidates to announce their interest in the D5 seat representing Albany, Berkeley, Emeryville, Piedmont, and West Oakland, North Oakland, Rockridge, Grand Lake, and portions of the Fruitvale, Manzanita and Dimond District neighborhoods.

By Magaly Muñoz

Carson has held the Board position for over 30 years and initially intended to run for re-election but later expressed in a statement that it was time for him to move on from the job.

Here are the candidates for Alameda County Board of Supervisors District 5:

Ben Bartlett is a current member of the Berkeley City Council representing District 3, which mainly includes South Berkeley. He was first elected in 2016 and won a second term in 2020. Bartlett states on his campaign website that his priorities will be leading the way on affordable housing, compassionate solutions for homelessness, mental healthcare, gun violence reduction, climate action, and community investment.

Nikki Fortunato-Bas is the current Oakland City Council President representing District 2, which includes Eastlake, Grand Lake, San Antonio, Chinatown and Jack London. She was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022. While serving on the council, Fortunato-Bas passed the state’s strongest city-level COVID-19 eviction moratorium in March 2020, passed legislation to help formerly incarcerated residents access rental housing, and led a task force to reimagine public safety in Oakland. As supervisor, she will prioritize the “three H’s”: homelessness, housing, healthcare.

John J. Bauters is a current member of the Emeryville City Council and former mayor of the city. He was first elected in 2016. He previously served as a legal aid attorney who represented victims of domestic violence, people experiencing homelessness, and handled evictions. On the council, he sits on the budget and governance committee, marketplace redevelopment project negotiating ad hoc committee, and the transportation committee. Bauters priorities for the Board will be “health, safety and opportunity for everyone.”

Ken Berrick is a current trustee for Alameda County Board of Education, representing Area 3. He was first appointed in 2008. Berrick is President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Just Advocates, a nonprofit organization based in Oakland and he is founder and CEO Emeritus of Seneca Family of Agencies. He is a Governor’s Appointee on the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission and the California Child Welfare Council. His priorities on the Board will be education, children’s services, healthcare, and mental health.

Omar Farmer is a current member of the city of Oakland’s Safety and Services Oversight Commission and has also served as an advisory board member of Oakland’s Reimagining Public Safety Task Force. He is also on the Alameda County Veteran Affairs Commission.

Gregory Hodge is the Executive Director of the Executives Alliance for Boys and Men of Color and owns Khepera Consulting. He previously served eight years on the Oakland Unified School District board from 2001 to 2009 and ran for Oakland mayor in 2022. Hodge’s priorities on the Board will be equitable economic opportunity, thriving neighborhood schools, community safety, housing and shelter, and arts, culture, and healing.

Chris Moore is the former president of CGM Ventures Inc., an investment and consulting firm that assists technology startup founders and executives. He is a campaign leader for the recall efforts against Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price. Moore’s priorities on the Board will be safety and services to clean up the county for residents that “deserve an improved and safer environment.”

Gerald Pechenuk was a volunteer election observer in 2022 and is currently among a group of plaintiffs suing the county of Alameda, including current members of the Board of Supervisors and Secretary of State Shirley Weber for preventing them from verifying the 2022 election results.

Lorrel Plimier is a former patent law attorney and co-founder of Step Forward Tech, an organization advising progressive organizations in using data and technology to advance their operations. Her priorities on the Board will include public health services, public safety, making steps toward 100% renewable energy, and supporting small businesses and workers in the county.

The Primary Election is scheduled for March 5, 2024.

Oakland Post

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

17 hours ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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Bay Area

State Controller Malia Cohen Keynote Speaker at S.F. Wealth Conference

California State Controller Malia Cohen delivered the keynote speech to over 50 business women at the Black Wealth Brunch held on March 28 at the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center at 301 Van Ness Ave. in San Francisco. The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.

Published

6 days ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

American Business Women’s Association Vice President Velma Landers, left, with California State Controller Malia Cohen (center), and ABWA President LaRonda Smith at the Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the ABWA at the Black Wealth Brunch.

By Carla Thomas

The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.

“Our goal is to educate Black and Brown families in the masses about financial wellness, wealth building, and how to protect and preserve wealth,” said ABWA San Francisco Chapter President LaRonda Smith.

ABWA’s mission is to bring together businesswomen of diverse occupations and provide opportunities for them to help themselves and others grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking support, and national recognition.

“This day is about recognizing influential women, hearing from an accomplished woman as our keynote speaker and allowing women to come together as powerful people,” said ABWA SF Chapter Vice President Velma Landers.

More than 60 attendees dined on the culinary delights of Chef Sharon Lee of The Spot catering, which included a full soul food brunch of skewered shrimp, chicken, blackened salmon, and mac and cheese.

Cohen discussed the many economic disparities women and people of color face. From pay equity to financial literacy, Cohen shared not only statistics, but was excited about a new solution in motion which entailed partnering with Californians for Financial Education.

“I want everyone to reach their full potential,” she said. “Just a few weeks ago in Sacramento, I partnered with an organization, Californians for Financial Education.

“We gathered 990 signatures and submitted it to the [California] Secretary of State to get an initiative on the ballot that guarantees personal finance courses for every public school kid in the state of California.

“Every California student deserves an equal opportunity to learn about filing taxes, interest rates, budgets, and understanding the impact of credit scores. The way we begin to do that is to teach it,” Cohen said.

By equipping students with information, Cohen hopes to close the financial wealth gap, and give everyone an opportunity to reach their full financial potential. “They have to first be equipped with the information and education is the key. Then all we need are opportunities to step into spaces and places of power.”

Cohen went on to share that in her own upbringing, she was not guided on financial principles that could jump start her finances. “Communities of color don’t have the same information and I don’t know about you, but I did not grow up listening to my parents discussing their assets, their investments, and diversifying their portfolio. This is the kind of nomenclature and language we are trying to introduce to our future generations so we can pivot from a life of poverty so we can pivot away and never return to poverty.”

Cohen urged audience members to pass the initiative on the November 2024 ballot.

“When we come together as women, uplift women, and support women, we all win. By networking and learning together, we can continue to build generational wealth,” said Landers. “Passing a powerful initiative will ensure the next generation of California students will be empowered to make more informed financial decisions, decisions that will last them a lifetime.”