Crime-ridden Oakland elects Barbara Lee for mayor, rejecting reform for more liberal chaos: ‘Thao 2.0’



Voters in crime-ridden Oakland, California, elected former U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, a Democrat, as the city’s next mayor.

Oakland held a special election on Tuesday after former Mayor Sheng Thao (D) was recalled by her constituents over the city’s rising crime rates, which prompted many businesses to flee the area.

'I’ve never uttered "defund the police."'

The FBI raided Thao’s home in June, and she was later indicted in January on bribery, conspiracy, and mail and wire fraud charges.

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price (D) was also recalled.

The successful recall efforts appeared to indicate that Oakland residents had had enough of progressive politicians’ soft-on-crime approach.

Seneca Scott, the founder of Neighbors Together Oakland, said the recalls signaled that the “phony ‘progressive’ movement is officially dead.”

However, last week, Oakland residents voted to replace Thao with Lee, a Democratic candidate who had opposed the recall effort and previously expressed support for defunding the police.

In June 2020, Lee told Politico that she was “really proud of what Minneapolis unanimously decided” after the city pulled funding from the police. Yet, Lee has insisted that she never supported the defunding movement.

“I’ve never uttered ‘defund the police,’” she told KRON-TV in January. “I never was there. Some were, some weren’t. But that’s okay. I wasn’t. Some said it was only progressives who were, doing the right thing for police reform. And believe you me, I’ve been out there on police accountability and police reform. That’s me. But, believe you me, I understand the need for public safety for everyone.”

Lee’s challenger, former City Council member Loren Taylor (D), who supported tougher police measures, held the initial lead in the mayoral race. However, Lee ultimately secured a five-point victory in the ranked-choice election.

Despite her previous comments indicating her support for yanking funding from law enforcement, Lee ran on a public safety platform in the special election.

Her “first 100 days” plan stated that she intends to address the city’s homelessness crisis and “bring together Police Department leadership and representatives from all business corridors to coordinate and improve public safety strategies.”

She also stated she would appoint a task force “to modernize Oakland’s Charter and strengthen government accountability.”

Scott referred to Lee as “Thao 2.0” and attributed her election success to her “tremendous name recognition.” He expressed doubt that she would keep her campaign promises.

“I have no confidence ‘progressives’ will actually follow thru, they just pandered as usual and will continue passing destructive anti-commerce policies,” Scott wrote in a post on X.

Lee stated on Saturday, "This morning, Loren Taylor called me to concede the race. While I believe strongly in respecting the democratic voting process and ballots will continue to be counted through Tuesday, the results are clear that the people of Oakland have elected me as your next Mayor. THANK YOU, OAKLAND!"

"I accept your choice with a deep sense of responsibility, humility, and love," she continued. "Oakland is a deeply divided City, and I answered the call to run, to unite our community—so that I can represent every voter, and we can all work together as One Oakland to solve our most pressing problems."

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Wife of NBA star Stephen Curry forced to permanently close her California store over 'safety' concerns



The wife of NBA star Stephen Curry announced this week that she would be forced to permanently close her retail store in California over safety concerns.

Ayesha Curry is the owner of Sweet July — a retail space in Oakland that is part coffee shop, part home goods store, and part bookstore.

Sweet July has promoted several messages spotlighting progressive ideals.

Just four years after Sweet July opened, the store will now shut down due to safety issues.

"In order to prioritize the safety of our patrons and staff, we have made the difficult decision to close our Sweet July cafe and store in Oakland," the official Instagram account for the retail store stated on Monday.

"We have loved being a part of Oakland and are grateful for the community that has opened their arms and embraced us. It has been an honor to serve you," the announcement added. "While this chapter comes to a close, Sweet July has exciting new ventures on the horizon that we can’t wait to share."

The brand proclaimed that Uptown Oakland is "where we call home."

Sweet July did not specify what safety threats the store encountered.

The business is set to permanently shutter its doors on Feb. 9.

Sweet July has promoted several messages spotlighting progressive ideals.

Sweet July stressed on its website, "And when it comes to the products, we believe the stories behind the makers are as important as the products they sell, which is why we've tirelessly researched and tested the best premium products from black-owned companies, as well as Bay Area makers, and curated them for you all under one roof."

The home goods seller publishes a magazine with articles titled: "The Boy Is (Still) Mine: Honoring My Queer Motherhood Journey," "For Reem Assil, Food Is a Tool for Palestinian Liberation," and "Rooted in Love: Can We Decide Who Makes Up Our Family Tree?"

Stephen and Ayesha Curry are devout liberal Democrats.

The couple, along with their children, appeared in a video endorsing Joe Biden for president in 2020.

Stephen was featured in a video shown at the 2024 Democratic National Convention endorsing Kamala Harris for president.

Sweet July is already the second business that the wife of the Golden State Warriors star basketball player closed in 2025.

Restaurant co-owners — Ayesha Curry and chef Michael Mina — closed down their International Smoke barbecue restaurant located at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas last month.

There have been multiple Oakland businesses that have closed due to overwhelming crime.

In March, a Taco Bell location in Oakland closed after criminals regularly robbed the fast-food restaurant and its customers.

As Blaze News reported last February, Denny's permanently closed its only restaurant location in Oakland after 54 years in business due to safety concerns.

In September 2023, Target shut down several stories in crime-ridden Democratic-run locations, including three stores in the San Francisco Bay area.

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Soros-backed leftist Sheng Thao indicted in corruption probe following ouster as Oakland mayor: Report



Over 60% of voters in Oakland, California, threw their Soros-backed Democratic mayor out of office in November, having evidently agreed with the recall campaign's assertion that Sheng Thao's "incompetence and dishonesty accelerated Oakland's decline, causing long-standing businesses to close and generational families to leave."

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Thao, who has desperately played the victim and tried to blame her downfall on "radical right-wing forces," was criminally indicted on Thursday by a federal jury following a months-long FBI corruption investigation. Thao's boyfriend, Andre Jones, has similarly been indicted.

The FBI raided Thao's house in June — confiscating both her phone and Jones' phone — as well as three properties linked to members of the affluent Duong family, who the East Bay Times indicated hold the city's curbside recycling contract through their California Waste Solutions Firm.

A spokesman for the waste company told the Chronicle that California Waste Solutions "understands that it has not been charged and is confident that it has not engaged in any wrongdoing relating to Ms. Thao or anyone else."

'She has to deal with the consequences of her actions.'

The Oakland Public Ethics Commission alleged in 2020 that the owners of California Waste Solutions, including David Duong and his son, Andy Duong, had illegally laundered campaign contributions to then-Councilwoman Thao and several of her peers.

In the wake of the raid, Thao maintained that the probe was "not about" her.

While authorities will apparently detail the nature of the charges and some of their findings later on Friday, the Chronicle noted that the charges might have something to do with Evolutionary Homes, an initiative to build container homes for the homeless that involved the Duongs and Mario Juarez, an individual accused of violating the law when trying to get Thao re-elected in 2022.

The city released hundreds of documents related to the probe to the Chronicle just weeks after Thao's ouster, revealing that Evolutionary Homes hit up Oakland City Hall for $90 million to build 300 shipping container homes. Representatives for Evolutionary Homes apparently provided city officials with a list of possible funding sources from Oakland's emergency funds — possibly some federally sourced — that could be used to bankroll their costly initiative. Thao reportedly did her best to help the shipping container venture with its scheme.

Renia Webb, Thao's former chief of staff, told KGO-TV, "I was informed there was pay-to-play behavior going on, that there was corrupt behavior going on in that administration."

"I'm honestly sad about Sheng. Again, she's a mom. She's very bright and smart," continued Webb. "She just made really foolish decisions. She has to deal with the consequences of her actions."

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Left-Wing Prosecutors Took Electoral Drubbing From Voters Fed Up With Rampant Crime

Several huge losses

Embattled Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao Recalled In Landslide

'Incompetence'

Progressive California county appears to recall two Soros-backed politicians amid devastating crime surge



Voters in Alameda County, California, appear to have chosen to remove two George Soros-backed politicians from office amid a devastating crime surge that has prompted many businesses to flee the area.

Ahead of the November election, separate recall efforts were launched against Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao (D) and Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price (D).

'The phony "progressive" movement is officially dead.'

Recall campaign leaders, who blamed Thao and Price for the county's recent crime surge, gathered enough local signatures to force an election to keep or remove the politicians.

With 100% of the 108 precincts tallied, nearly 32,000 residents, 65.19%, voted to oust Thao.

With full results from all 570 precincts, more than 134,000 locals, 64.79%, voted to remove Price.

The recall efforts to replace Price, Save Alameda for Everyone and Supporters of Recall Pamela Price, spent approximately $2.6 million on their campaigns. According to KGO-TV, they were backed by several police officers' unions, PG&E, and hedge fund executive Philip Dreyfuss.

In addition to a recall effort launched by Oakland United to Recall Sheng Thao, Thao faced calls to resign from the Oakland Police Officer's Association. In August, the union urged Thao to step down to allow residents to vote for a new mayor in the November election.

Union president Huy Nguyen stated, "Today we are asking Mayor Sheng Thao to recall as mayor immediately for a lot of the failures in this city, going from crime, the budget crisis, the distraction of the FBI raid that prevents our ability to function as a city."

Thao is currently wrapped up in an FBI investigation; however, no charges have been filed against her.

She refused the union's calls to step down and accused it of "playing politics."

While the final outcomes have not been officially announced as of Wednesday afternoon, if the results hold, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors will appoint a DA in Price's place to finish out her term, and the Oakland City Council will step in for Thao.

In the summer of 2023, even the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's Oakland branch acknowledged that the area's crime "doom-loop" resulted from "progressive policies and failed leadership."

Businesses that have fled the area under Thao's and Price's leadership include Denny's, In-N-Out, Black Bear Diner, Subway, and Starbucks, to name a few. Clorox Company, Blue Shield of California, and Kaiser Permanente were forced to increase their security due to the area's uptick in criminal activity.

Seneca Scott, the founder of Neighbors Together Oakland and a recall spokesperson, stated, “The phony ‘progressive’ movement is officially dead. May it rest in pieces.”

Neither Thao's nor Price's campaigns responded to KGO's requests for comment.

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Blue City DA Facing Recall Vote Backed Halting Death Penalty For Man Convicted Of Torture, Killing Infant

'Horror'

Yet another Oakland street takeover with thugs firing guns caught on video; residents complain cops are nowhere to be found



Just about a month ago, five people were shot during an Oakland street takeover. The lawless gatherings also are known as "sideshows," during which motorists block off intersections and drive in circles, peeling out and burning rubber as large crowds look on and record video.

Well, early Saturday morning, Oakland suffered yet another street takeover, this one an hour long that included participants shooting guns into the air — all caught on video. Shellshocked residents complained that police were nowhere to be found, KTVU-TV reported.

'We know that we don’t have enough police officers. ... We can’t afford it.'

You can view a video report here that includes what appears to be cellphone clips showing individuals firing shots into the air during the sideshow.

Residents told KTVU they're afraid stray gunfire may hurt someone — or worse.

"I just heard gunshots, like gunshots coming from all directions, people trying to hide. They just fire up in the air, and you don’t know where it’s going to land," a neighbor who asked for anonymity told the station.

Indeed, the resident was one of several neighbors who told KTVU that such sideshows outside their homes near 98th Avenue and Empire Boulevard have become commonplace.

"Like a whole hour. No police. I didn’t hear no sirens at all. ... Some people were on top of that house's roof. There were fireworks included. There were blue lasers, green lasers," a neighbor revealed to the station.

Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and Police Chief Floyd Mitchell have appeared at recent town halls pledging to do more to combat sideshows, KTVU said. Possible solutions include the use of new technology, such as drones and cameras, and the help of the California Highway Patrol, the station said.

"We know that we don’t have enough police officers," the mayor said one recent town hall, according to KTVU. "We can’t afford it, but that doesn’t mean that we use that as an excuse or reason not to be sure that people feel safe."

Mitchell noted that police are "working hard to try to curb this activity. We have a sideshow detail that goes out every Friday and Saturday," the station said.

Mitchell also said redesigned intersections could help, too, but KTVU reported that residents near Saturday's sideshow said they're still waiting to see city leaders keep their promises on this matter.

"I’ve been here my whole life, and it has changed, it has changed so much, and it’s frustrating because it seems like they don’t care," a neighbor told the station.

KTVU said it reached out to police and the mayor's office for comment on the fears and frustrations about area crime that residents have expressed — but the station said it didn't hear back from either in time for its report.

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Bay Area leftist candidate who advocates for homeless apparently has campaign money stolen by brazen homeless woman



The campaign for a left-leaning candidate running for city council in Oakland, California, got off to a bad start after a homeless woman apparently stole a bag full of donations during a campaign kickoff rally over the weekend.

On Sunday, Charlene Wang, 33, hosted an event at a local park to launch her campaign for the open seat on the Oakland City Council. As the event wrapped up, a women described as homeless and "clearly mentally disturbed" by the California Globe suddenly began swiping several bags and purses, reports claimed.

'Tirelessly fighting for disadvantaged communities by launching new social programs at all levels of government for homelessness, education, healthcare, and environmental justice.'

Wang was able to wrestle most of the purses, including her own and her mother's, back. However, the homeless woman apparently kept hold and wouldn't let go of the bag containing a host of donation checks collected at the rally.

According to video, Wang and her team attempted to reason with the woman in hopes of convincing her to give the bag back — to no avail.

"I very much tried to have a de-escalatory conversation with her to convince her to hand over the bag," Wang said, according to KGO. "Offer her a warm meal at the grocery store, even give her money in exchange for the bag, but that did not work out."

Wang also attempted to solicit the help of those involved with the Mobile Assistance Community Responders of Oakland Program, which offers "community response ... for non-violent, non-emergency 911 calls" in the city. Unfortunately, the ostensible social workers weren't available during the weekend, KGO indicated.

Finally, fearing that the situation was escalating out of control, Wang resorted to contacting law enforcement. Unfortunately, police weren't available to respond either.

"They said there were 250 calls ahead of us, and they said they would actually come by to take a report afterwards," Wang told KGO.

After allegedly throwing food and, in the words of the California Globe, "flashing her whatevers," the suspected thief reportedly wandered away, donation bag still in hand.

Wang estimated that the bag contained about $1,000 worth of checks. According to the California Globe, Wang has asked donors to stop payment on those checks.

Despite the apparent theft, Wang harbors no ill will against the suspect. "I am not angry at her or anything like that," she insisted.

"I can only imagine the trauma she is going through having to live on the streets."

Wang, who is running on a platform of reducing crime and helping the homeless, was left frustrated and confused by the silence from Oakland police. As of Wednesday, they still had not come to investigate the issue, Wang claimed.

"I think this is yet another example of first responder service. I was left to fend for myself in an essence," she said.

The New York Post reached out to the police department for comment.

Wang's campaign website brags about her work on campaigns for former President Barack Obama and failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton as well as her previous work to help the homeless in Massachusetts. The website further notes that Wang identifies as LBGTQ+ and claims that she has dedicated her life "to tirelessly fighting for disadvantaged communities by launching new social programs at all levels of government for homelessness, education, healthcare, and environmental justice."

Even with those leftist bona fides, Wang is still surprised by the association between leftists and anti-cop sentiment. "I’m frustrated by the idea that progressives are automatically anti-police, that we don’t care about public safety," she said, per the California Globe.

"That is the state of the first responders in Oakland, and that’s why I’m running."

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ROOKE: Police Association In California Is Finally Fed Up With Mayor

'every day you are in office, Oakland is less safe'