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City Auditor Courtney Ruby Joins Mayor’s Race

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Oakland City Auditor Courtney Ruby is the latest to join the growing field of candidates challenging Mayor Jean Quan in the November election.

Ruby, 46, is serving her second term as Oakland’s elected auditor, a position that she has been using to develop a reputation as a government watchdog.

Last year, one of her audits erupted into controversy raising questions about her credibility, when she issued a report targeting two African American City Council members.

Others have questioned why her audits tend to focus on small, minority contractors and nonprofits, rather than the big developers with political connections – whose multimillion and billion dollar deals seem to leave the public shortchanged.

Though the Post and others said last year that she was building her reputation in order to run for mayor, she at the time said she would not run – because she had two small children at home.

However, Ruby has decided to run, she says, because of her concerns about crime and public safety.

“A year ago, I said I wasn’t running because I had a new family,” Ruby told the Oakland Tribune. “Today, I feel I have to run because of my family.”

Ruby sent out an email this week, announcing her candidacy.

“As auditor, my job is to find problems and fight for solutions,” she wrote in the email.

“I’ve gotten under the hood of nearly every part of this city government – and we’re helping restore an ethical culture, saving taxpayers millions of dollars and fighting to make sure the people get what they deserve from the people’s government.

Courtney Ruby is a graduate of American University, a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner.

Prior to holding her elected position, she, served as vice-chair of the Budget Advisory Committee for the City of Oakland and Board Finance Chair for a local nonprofit dedicated to ending the cycle of homelessness

She lives in East Oakland with her boys, ages five and six.

Others running for mayor include Councilwoman Libby Schaaf, former school board member Dan Siegel, Port of Oakland Commissioner Bryan Parker and San Francisco State professor Joe Tuman.

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Oakland Post: Week of November 26 – December 2, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 26 – December 2, 2025

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Oakland Post: Week of November 19 – 25, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 19 – 25, 2025

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IN MEMORIAM: William ‘Bill’ Patterson, 94

Bill devoted his life to public service and education. In 1971, he became the founding director for the Peralta Community College Foundation, he also became an administrator for Oakland Parks and Recreation overseeing 23 recreation centers, the Oakland Zoo, Children’s Fairyland, Lake Merritt, and the Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center.

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William "Bill" Patterson, 94. Photo courtesy of the Patterson family.

William “Bill” Patterson, 94, of Little Rock, Arkansas, passed away peacefully on October 21, 2025, at his home in Oakland, CA. He was born on May 19, 1931, to Marie Childress Patterson and William Benjamin Patterson in Little Rock, Arkansas. He graduated from Dunbar High School and traveled to Oakland, California, in 1948. William Patterson graduated from San Francisco State University, earning both graduate and undergraduate degrees. He married Euradell “Dell” Patterson in 1961. Bill lovingly took care of his wife, Dell, until she died in 2020.

Bill devoted his life to public service and education. In 1971, he became the founding director for the Peralta Community College Foundation, he also became an administrator for Oakland Parks and Recreation overseeing 23 recreation centers, the Oakland Zoo, Children’s Fairyland, Lake Merritt, and the Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center.

He served on the boards of Oakland’s Urban Strategies Council, the Oakland Public Ethics Commission, and the Oakland Workforce Development Board.

He was a three-term president of the Oakland branch of the NAACP.

Bill was initiated in the Gamma Alpha chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.

In 1997 Bill was appointed to the East Bay Utility District Board of Directors. William Patterson was the first African American Board President and served the board for 27 years.

Bill’s impact reached far beyond his various important and impactful positions.

Bill mentored politicians, athletes and young people. Among those he mentored and advised are legends Joe Morgan, Bill Russell, Frank Robinson, Curt Flood, and Lionel Wilson to name a few.

He is survived by his son, William David Patterson, and one sister, Sarah Ann Strickland, and a host of other family members and friends.

A celebration of life service will take place at Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center (Calvin Simmons Theater) on November 21, 2025, at 10 AM.

His services are being livestreamed at: https://www.facebook.com/events/1250167107131991/

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Euradell and William Patterson scholarship fund TBA.

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