Why was a vote for election transparency blocked in Alameda County?

Also: Coliseum chaos, Price and Thao recall woes, voter guide adds recalls and ballot measures

🚨 30 days to the election! Ballots are being mailed this week. Read our voter guide!

---

Voter guide adds recalls, ballot measures

This week, we published the final version of the Empower Oakland Voter Guide. Our endorsement committee provided detailed analyses and explanations on each of the following recommendations (linked below):

✅ Yes on Measure MM

✅ Yes on Measure NN

✅ Yes on Measure OO

✅ Yes to Recall DA Pamela Price

✅ Yes to Recall Mayor Sheng Thao

---

Bad week for election transparency

Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash

It was a bad week for election transparency after Alameda County Board Supervisor Lena Tam blocked a key vote on whether the county registrar would be required to release daily cast vote records (CVRs) starting on election night.

• The CVR is an anonymized data file that contains the choices made on an individual ballot, but without any information that could identify the voter. If needed, CVRs can be used to audit and verify election results to ensure that every vote is accurately counted and the outcome is correct.

Why it matters: In the past, Alameda County would only release CVRs after the election was certified. The new policy would require CVRs to be made public at the same time as the initial election results, along with every subsequent update until the results are certified (which can take weeks or months after election day).

Past troubles: The error risk became an embarrassing reality in the 2022 election for Oakland School Board, when the registrar incorrectly tabulated the vote and declared the wrong winner.

• The error wasn’t uncovered until nearly 2 months after the election — and it was found by an independent lobbying group that ran their own audit using the CVR. 

• Unfortunately it was too late, with the wrong school board candidate already declared the winner. He was sworn into office before needing to resign to make way for the correct winner.

Supporters: The CVR policy was recommended months ago by the Alameda County Elections Commission and outgoing supervisor Keith Carson, who said releasing CVR records online is becoming standard across the country.

• Oakland NAACP President wrote in a letter to the Board of Supervisors that adopting this practice would “enhance transparency, allow for early detection of discrepancies, and increase public confidence in our election outcomes.”

Opponents: County Registrar Tim Dupuis, Supervisor Tam, and the County Counsel’s office cited privacy implications of SB 1328, new legislation that protects the privacy of voters and their ballots, which Gov. Newsom signed last month.

• Dupuis also said understaffing could prevent his office from adopting the policy in time for the election, even though Oakland’s voting system vendor already confirmed the CVR file is automatically generated by its voting machines.

Bottom line: Transparency and accuracy in elections is paramount, especially with so much at stake for Oaklanders this November.

• The Board of Supervisors will attempt another vote on October 8.

• Notably, SF County has been releasing CVRs since 2015, using the same voting equipment and systems as Alameda County.

---

Coliseum chaos

The Coliseum deal had a turbulent week. It started on Tuesday when Councilmembers Ramachandran, Gallo, and Reid tried to confirm whether the city had received critical payments to avoid activating a contingency budget plan.

• The city was promised $15M by October 1, otherwise it would be forced to make significant cuts to the police and fire departments.

Where’s the money: The city has yet to confirm the payments have hit the bank. Thao’s office stuck to its talking points saying the deal is “on track,” while AASEG said the money would be wired by October 7.

• When asked, City Administrator Jestin Johnson said the city’s contingency plan was already in effect, adding to the confusion.

• Councilmember Reid said multiple emails to Thao’s office asking for updates on the Coliseum deal have gone unanswered.

Surprise: In an unexpected twist, on Thursday it was reported that Thao and AASEG were close to finalizing a new agreement that would raise the Coliseum price to $110M, up from the previously agreed $105M.

• The new terms include a bulk payment of $95M paid by May 2025, instead of multiple payments spread over years.

• City council members weren’t made aware of this new deal, even though it would require the council’s approval.

But, why: By closing the deal earlier, Thao gets the money she needs to cover the city’s rising salaries and operating expenses. But the revised deal price is still well short of the $125M that AASEG is paying to the A’s for their 50% stake of the Coliseum.

• AASEG claims the A’s get a higher price to compensate the team for due diligence it conducted when it bought its stake from Alameda County in 2019.

Bottom line: The status of the Coliseum deal could range anywhere from everything is fine to total panic. Herein lies a number of key questions:

• Is the contingency plan and its detrimental police and fire cuts — which are the basis for the entire Coliseum sale to begin with — currently in effect?

• Why did Thao renegotiate a new deal that’s still $15M shy of the valuation the A’s got just weeks ago?

• If Thao wants AASEG to close sooner, wouldn’t AASEG be in a position to negotiate a lower price, not a higher one? (And what’s AASEG’s motive for doing so?)

---

In other news…

• Pamela Price was dealt a major blow after Congressman Eric Swalwell (repping most of eastern Alameda County) threw his support behind the recall, saying she’s “failed the people of the East Bay.” He criticized her weak sentencing guidelines and lack of gun enhancements for violent crimes, adding that “the cops catch [the criminals] and Price releases [them].”(East Bay Insiders)

• Oaklanders started to receive sample ballots last week, which includes official language from each of the campaigns. Under the mayoral recall, Thao’s campaign reportedly missed the deadline to submit their response, meaning the column where she would have outlined her reasons not to be recalled was left completely blank. The mishap was eerily reminiscent of her office missing a deadline to get the city up to $15M in state aid to fight retail theft. (SF Chronicle)

• A 21-year-old man was charged with 12 felony counts for armed robberies of five Oakland businesses. Earlier this year, the same man was arrested for the armed robbery of a San Leandro fast food restaurant. In the earlier case, he pleaded not guilty and was released on his own recognizance. (Mercury News)

• Billions of dollars are at stake this November with a number of measures on the ballot. The language in these ballot measures are often intentionally biased or misleading for voters. A group of former Alameda Grand Jurors aim to correct this bias by creating a rating system that scores and reviews each ballot measure. (Oakland Report)

• Last month, Oakland Report published an in-depth analysis of Oakland’s pension debt problems which are costing the city $450M per year. If you missed it, catch the quick 12-minute podcast that breaks down everything you need to know. (Oakland Report)

---

🐻 East Bay Proud

East Bay residents flocked to Berkeley yesterday for Cal’s football game against the University of Miami. With the A’s and Raiders gone, and the Warriors now across the Bay, it was an encouraging sign that sporting events on the national stage are alive and well in the East Bay.

The day began with Cal hosting its first ever ESPN College Gameday, which included an inspiring showing of fans and students, a FG kick to win $100K, and Oakland son Marshawn Lynch showing up in Beastmode fashion to support his alma mater.

---

✅ Get ready to vote!

• Update your voter registration and mailing address

• Check your Oakland council district number

• Check your County supervisor district number

• View Empower Oakland’s 2024 voter guide

---

📢 Help needed!

Empower Oakland needs your help! We're looking for volunteers to help with:

• Field operations (visiting farmer's markets and community events)

• Design (must be experienced with Figma)

Also, please consider donating to power our targeted digital advertising and field campaigns to get our voter guide in front of as many Oaklanders as possible.

---

Contributions to Empower Oakland Committee are not tax deductible for federal income tax purposes.