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Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I’m voting for Barbara Lee because she is the only candidate who has the respect of all the different constituencies in Oakland that will need to work together to solve Oakland’s current challenges. She has the experience, the wisdom, the gravitas, the connections, the ideas, the energy, the optimism and the determination that we need. People love her and admire her so much — and she’s going to need every bit of that social and political capital that she has built up over the decades, because Oakland, like many other cities, is facing a big budget crisis and thorny problems.?

At a rally for her at the Grand Lake Theatre a couple of Saturdays ago, I got to hear from so many people at different levels of government who are excited about her campaign and are eager to work with her:

- Alameda County Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas

- Assemblymember Mia Bonta

- Interim Oakland Mayor Kevin Jenkins, who said he gets calls from Barbara Lee at all hours with ideas and questions — he marveled at her energy and the depth of her knowledge of how Oakland works?

Her list of??is very long and comprehensive, but what I think is remarkable that she is endorsed by every member of the Oakland City Council but one (whom she says is an old friend and she wouldn’t name them!) Her main opponent professes to be proud that he is not endorsed by the City Council members, because he claims it makes him “independent” — but he should know that isn’t how things work. He served one four-year term on the City Council, with very little to show for it beyond obstruction and burnt bridges. The reality is that the mayor HAS to work with the City Council and can’t go it alone. I personally feel that a guy with an MBA and so little political experience has no business running the City of Oakland, when we have a candidate with the integrity and proven leadership of Barbara Lee.?

I met her at a house party where she refused to take a seat and remained standing even though it was her 5th event of the day. She told the gathering about all the different sources of revenue she’s working on securing - from the County, the State, from grants, from collecting fees through offices that have been deprioritized and understaffed since the pandemic -- “to get Oakland the money it’s due.” ?I got to shake her hand and talk to her one-on-one, and I expressed my surprise that she was willing to take on this job, and she said she has done many hard things in her life and she’s ready to take on this challenge. She also told me that now that she isn’t flying back and forth between Washington DC and Oakland every week the way she did for so many years (three or four days in DC; three or four days in Oakland each week), she has lots more free time to throw into this.?

People who say she’s too old are thinking about other politicians and have not seen her in action right here and right now. She is a dynamo! Furthermore, this is only to finish out the current term. In November 2026, only 1 1/2 years from now, she will decide if she wants to keep going and we can vote on whether we want to keep her in the job. We should be so lucky!

Sincerely,

Jen V

#798

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Thank you Jennifer for the thoughtful email about the support for Barbara Lee.

? ? Your reminder that she will have the short period in which to show us all what direction she is taking in working with others, will help us all to decide if we want to anchor her in the mayoral position!

? ?Here’s hoping,

? ? Carolina

Show quoted text

On Mar 20, 2025, at 8:30?PM, Jennifer Vetter via groups.io <jrvetter@...> wrote:

?Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I’m voting for Barbara Lee because she is the only candidate who has the respect of all the different constituencies in Oakland that will need to work together to solve Oakland’s current challenges. She has the experience, the wisdom, the gravitas, the connections, the ideas, the energy, the optimism and the determination that we need. People love her and admire her so much — and she’s going to need every bit of that social and political capital that she has built up over the decades, because Oakland, like many other cities, is facing a big budget crisis and thorny problems.?

At a rally for her at the Grand Lake Theatre a couple of Saturdays ago, I got to hear from so many people at different levels of government who are excited about her campaign and are eager to work with her:

- Alameda County Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas
- Assemblymember Mia Bonta
- Interim Oakland Mayor Kevin Jenkins, who said he gets calls from Barbara Lee at all hours with ideas and questions — he marveled at her energy and the depth of her knowledge of how Oakland works?

Her list of??is very long and comprehensive, but what I think is remarkable that she is endorsed by every member of the Oakland City Council but one (whom she says is an old friend and she wouldn’t name them!) Her main opponent professes to be proud that he is not endorsed by the City Council members, because he claims it makes him “independent” — but he should know that isn’t how things work. He served one four-year term on the City Council, with very little to show for it beyond obstruction and burnt bridges. The reality is that the mayor HAS to work with the City Council and can’t go it alone. I personally feel that a guy with an MBA and so little political experience has no business running the City of Oakland, when we have a candidate with the integrity and proven leadership of Barbara Lee.?

I met her at a house party where she refused to take a seat and remained standing even though it was her 5th event of the day. She told the gathering about all the different sources of revenue she’s working on securing - from the County, the State, from grants, from collecting fees through offices that have been deprioritized and understaffed since the pandemic -- “to get Oakland the money it’s due.” ?I got to shake her hand and talk to her one-on-one, and I expressed my surprise that she was willing to take on this job, and she said she has done many hard things in her life and she’s ready to take on this challenge. She also told me that now that she isn’t flying back and forth between Washington DC and Oakland every week the way she did for so many years (three or four days in DC; three or four days in Oakland each week), she has lots more free time to throw into this.?

People who say she’s too old are thinking about other politicians and have not seen her in action right here and right now. She is a dynamo! Furthermore, this is only to finish out the current term. In November 2026, only 1 1/2 years from now, she will decide if she wants to keep going and we can vote on whether we want to keep her in the job. We should be so lucky!

Sincerely,

Jen V

#799

Hi Friends,

I appreciate the openness in sharing our thoughts on the upcoming mayoral election. Oakland is in a trying situation and definitely needs strong and decisive leadership, not only to navigate us through our local challenges, but also to demonstrate progressive competence on a state and national level.

I would count myself as a casual observer of local politics so I don’t have a strong understanding of the various dynamics inside city hall, nor what the key levers of power are that a mayor must wield in order to successfully roll out their agenda. Obviously the city council adopts the budget, so that’s probably the most important relationship. With that said, there are issues that I care strongly about. The two at the top are Transparency and Accountability, especially when it comes to lobbying and city contracts. This is an absolute must given our current budget challenges.

I have recently started doing some research into both Barbara Lee and Loren Taylor as it seems this is likely where things are going. In the spirit of transparency, Loren Taylor is much closer to my network, and I strongly believe the party needs to get younger across all levels (local, state, national). So on the surface, I am naturally more inclined towards supporting Loren. However, a candidate's priorities, and their ability to deliver on them have to be the deciding factor, and Barbara Lee definitely has respect and experience.

One red flag I have found from Barbara Lee is on she chose to list endorsements and news ahead of her priorities. This to me shouts politics versus policy. Loren on the other hand lists his priorities ahead of his endorsements on . Maybe this speaks to their relative strengths, maybe it speaks to something deeper, maybe nothing at all.

In any case, I think either candidate will be an upgrade, and I am open to learning more about both of them over the coming weeks.

Best,

Abe

Show quoted text

On Thu, Mar 20, 2025 at 9:20?PM carojuarez637 via <carojuarez637=[email protected]> wrote:

Thank you Jennifer for the thoughtful email about the support for Barbara Lee.
? ? Your reminder that she will have the short period in which to show us all what direction she is taking in working with others, will help us all to decide if we want to anchor her in the mayoral position!
? ?Here’s hoping,
? ? Carolina

On Mar 20, 2025, at 8:30?PM, Jennifer Vetter via <jrvetter=[email protected]> wrote:

?Dear Friends and Neighbors,

I’m voting for Barbara Lee because she is the only candidate who has the respect of all the different constituencies in Oakland that will need to work together to solve Oakland’s current challenges. She has the experience, the wisdom, the gravitas, the connections, the ideas, the energy, the optimism and the determination that we need. People love her and admire her so much — and she’s going to need every bit of that social and political capital that she has built up over the decades, because Oakland, like many other cities, is facing a big budget crisis and thorny problems.?

At a rally for her at the Grand Lake Theatre a couple of Saturdays ago, I got to hear from so many people at different levels of government who are excited about her campaign and are eager to work with her:

- Alameda County Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas
- Assemblymember Mia Bonta
- Interim Oakland Mayor Kevin Jenkins, who said he gets calls from Barbara Lee at all hours with ideas and questions — he marveled at her energy and the depth of her knowledge of how Oakland works?

Her list of??is very long and comprehensive, but what I think is remarkable that she is endorsed by every member of the Oakland City Council but one (whom she says is an old friend and she wouldn’t name them!) Her main opponent professes to be proud that he is not endorsed by the City Council members, because he claims it makes him “independent” — but he should know that isn’t how things work. He served one four-year term on the City Council, with very little to show for it beyond obstruction and burnt bridges. The reality is that the mayor HAS to work with the City Council and can’t go it alone. I personally feel that a guy with an MBA and so little political experience has no business running the City of Oakland, when we have a candidate with the integrity and proven leadership of Barbara Lee.?

I met her at a house party where she refused to take a seat and remained standing even though it was her 5th event of the day. She told the gathering about all the different sources of revenue she’s working on securing - from the County, the State, from grants, from collecting fees through offices that have been deprioritized and understaffed since the pandemic -- “to get Oakland the money it’s due.” ?I got to shake her hand and talk to her one-on-one, and I expressed my surprise that she was willing to take on this job, and she said she has done many hard things in her life and she’s ready to take on this challenge. She also told me that now that she isn’t flying back and forth between Washington DC and Oakland every week the way she did for so many years (three or four days in DC; three or four days in Oakland each week), she has lots more free time to throw into this.?

People who say she’s too old are thinking about other politicians and have not seen her in action right here and right now. She is a dynamo! Furthermore, this is only to finish out the current term. In November 2026, only 1 1/2 years from now, she will decide if she wants to keep going and we can vote on whether we want to keep her in the job. We should be so lucky!

Sincerely,

Jen V

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Why I'm voting for Barbara Lee for Oakland Mayor

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