In a bruising primary campaign, it’s certain Alameda County will elect its first Black DA, but which two campaigns will advance to November?
EAST BAY JUNE PRIMARY PREVIEW
PROLOGUE
Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley faced a challenger for the first time in 2018. Despite eventually turning away Oakland civil rights attorney Pamela Price by 15 points four years ago, O’Malley’s hard-fought win nevertheless revealed weaknesses that would only grow in coming years. Police accountability grew even larger in the public’s consciousness after the death of George Floyd, and likely greatly informed O’Malley’s decision last year to charge a police officer for the first time ever in Alameda County with involuntary manslaughter. O’Malley saw the nation and county had rapidly changed in a very short period of time and she decided in 2021 not to seek re-election. During this same period, Price continued her advocacy as a member of the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee and appeared likely to run again for DA in 2022 whether O’Malley was in the race or not. A surprising aspect of O’Malley’s retreat from elected office after 12 years is she did not specifically back a successor. It’s a move that has provided one of the many contours for this race and forced candidate’s employed at the Alameda County’s DA office to disassociate themselves from O’Malley’s tenure.
MEET THE CANDIDATES
PAMELA PRICE
If you’ve been around Alameda County politics for a few years, you might be able to recite Price’s resume because she weaves it into stump speeches so well. She was a problem child, became a lawyer, argued a case before the U.S. Supreme Court, and became a well-known Oakland civil rights advocate. Along the way Price ran for the state Assembly, Oakland mayor, and DA without much success. But, along the way, she has become one of the region’s best orators, and, unlike many East Bay candidates, not afraid to mix it up with her opponents. She is the candidate most pushing for wholesale reform at the DA’s office.
TERRY WILEY
When it comes to prosecuting cases in Alameda County and knowing the ins and outs of the DA’s office, Wiley is the most experienced candidate in the race. The problem, however, is Wiley’s plus is also perceived as a negative in this race. Over three decades at the DA’s office, Wiley touts leading almost every department. He currently serves as assistant DA. The notable case in Wiley’s resume was his prosecution of Oakland’s notorious Riders case that involved widespread misconduct among Oakland police officers that later resulted in federal oversight of Oakland PD that is still in place 19 years later. Wiley, however, was unable to win the case, a result that Price has routinely threw in his face.
JIMMIE WILSON
Like Wiley, Jimmie Wilson also serves as an Alameda County prosecutor. Also like Wiley, he has sought to keep O’Malley at arms-length from his campaign, aiming to highlight his experience at the DA’s office, while asserting he was not part of its problems. Despite a strong push by Alameda County Democrats to sideline law enforcement’s strength in this race, Wilson has nonetheless accepted and trumpeted endorsements from the Alameda County sheriff’s deputies union, and others.
SETH STEWARD
A telegenic, well-spoken, former Air Force pilot that served in the Iraq War, Steward is an intriguing candidate. He even speaks with a clear Barack Obama-sounding drawl. Steward was a late-arriving candidate to this race, but his early fundraising proved formidable. He currently serves as Oakland Councilmember Dan Kalb’s chief of staff, prior to working at the San Francisco DA’s office. Whereas, Price, Wiley, and Wilson have constantly engaged in campaign fisticuffs, Steward has consistently avoided joining the fray. It’s a decision that has framed his candidacy as an alternative for voters.
PLOTLINES
As expected, O’Malley hovers over every aspect of this primary campaign. Price made significant noise about internal emails in the DA’s office during the 2018 campaign that showed prosecutors, including Wiley, improperly electioneering in favor of O’Malley. Subsequently, Wiley and Wilson were forced to follow Price’s lead and consistently demonize O’Malley’s DA office, despite being part of the team for its duration. All four candidates have been full-throated in their belief the DA’s office needs reform. The question is how much reform should be prescribed. For most of this year, the tenor of this race has been aggressive. Price has thrown repeated jabs at Wiley. Wilson has thrown haymakers at Wiley. The fisticuffs suggest both believe Wiley is the frontrunner, or, at least, was the early frontrunner. The race turned negative after a push poll appeared to be probing voters’ opinion of an incident with police that involved Wiley’s son. Last weekend, Wilson’s campaign dropped a bomb on Wiley’s campaign with a hard-hitting mailer that highlighted Wiley’s son and a shootout he had with police in 2017. It criticized Wiley for not knowing an assault rifle was in his home and that he lives in Benicia.
PAST RESULT
2018 JUNE PRIMARY
Nancy O’Malley 167,929 votes (57.8%)
Pamela Price 122,850 votes (42.2%)
CAMPAIGN FINANCE
JIMMIE WILSON—Jan. 1-April 23
Cash on Hand $294,661
Cash IN $196,348
Cash OUT $85,232
Loans/Debts $2,000
Total Cash IN (2021-22) $414,457
Donor Type: Venture capitalists/individuals. Notable Donors: Joseph Saunders $40,000; Sharon Saunders $40,000; Peter Berg $40,000; AB Group LLC $40,000; Christine Berg $38,672; Patricia Wilson $38,500.
Top Endorsers: Deputy Sheriff’s Association (DSA) of Alameda County, Berkeley, Emeryville, Oakland, Alameda, Hayward, San Leandro, Union City, and Newark Police Officers’ Associations.
TERRY WILEY—Jan. 1-April 23
Cash on Hand $241,995
Cash IN $151,466
Cash OUT $169,813
Loans/Debts $6,788
Total Cash IN (2021-22) $495,732
Donor Type: Labor unions/Alameda County prosecutors/individuals. Notable Donors: Alameda County Prosecutors Association $40,000; Eric Swalwell for Congress $20,000; Phil Tagami $13,900; Matthew Beltramo $10,000; California Waste Solutions $5,000; Bill Quirk for Assembly 2022 $3,500; Bill Quirk $3,500.
Top Endorsers: Rep. Eric Swalwell, civil rights attorneys John Burris, Benjamin Crump, Alameda County Prosecutors’ Association, Building and Construction Trades Council of Alameda County, American Federation of State, County, Municipal Employees.
Independent Expenditure Committees: SUPPORT: Alameda County Prosecutors PAC.
PAMELA PRICE—Jan. 1-April 23
Cash on Hand $93,922
Cash IN $122,668
Cash OUT $125,553
Loans/Debts $20,725
Total Cash IN (2021-22) $337,791
Donor Type: Individuals/labor unions. Notable Donors: John Bauer $40,000; Pamela Price $13,345; Thurman V. White, Jr. $4,500; Calif. Conference Amalgamated Transit Union $4,000; Howard Egerman $2,250; UFCW Local 5 $1,000; Jean Quan $100.
Top Endorsers: California Nurses Association, Our Revolution East Bay, Democracy for America, Danny Glover, Angela Davis
Independent Expenditure Committees: SUPPORT: Independent Expenditure Committee in Support of Pamela Price for DA. OPPOSE: Golden State Communities.
SETH STEWARD—Jan. 1-April 23
Cash on Hand $56,374
Cash IN $24,198
Cash OUT $72,669
Loans/Debts $965
Total Cash IN (2021-22) $133,270
Donor Type: Individuals. Notable Donors: Betty Smith $5,900; Ethan Steward $4,500; Rebecca Steward $2,761; Michael Stanton $2,00; Courtney Welch $250; Terry Taplin $100.
Top Endorsers: Assemblymember Mia Bonta, Supervisor Keith Carson, Malia Cohen,
PRIMARY OUTLOOK
The central choice for voters is whether or not they believe the Alameda County DA’s office needs wholesale change or some reforms? Price’s argument for an overhaul of the DA’s office has been forcefully articulated for several years and it hasn’t changed during this primary campaign. It’s very likely, if elected, that Price will push for extensive reforms and will likely make extensive personnel changes. Because Price has been on the ballot so many times, the consensus is she finished first or second and nabs a spot in the November runoff, which is triggered if no candidate wins a majority of the vote in June. However, keep in mind that Price is very much a regional candidate. She faired extremely well in 2018 in Oakland and Berkeley, the progressive parts of Alameda County, but struggled elsewhere. Despite Price’s extensive campaign experience, she has never won a big race. Independent Expenditure Committees are very present in this race, but as today, none have gone negative. Don’t expect the powder to be left dry very long. Wiley and Wilson are somewhat similar candidates, but both have very well-funded campaigns. Either could land in a November runoff, maybe they face-off in November? It’s too early to tell if Wilson’s attack in Wiley changes the needle. There are some signs that Wilson’s campaign is trending favorably of late. Meanwhile, Steward appears to be the boutique choice of Alameda County elected officials and political insiders. That support doesn’t translate to much at the polls, but there is a sense that Steward has a bright future somewhere in elected office.
PREDICTION
There will be a November runoff. 1. Wilson 2. Price.