Signs that Oakland voters are concerned about Barbara Lee's age

A candid look at how some members of an Oakland Democratic club view Barbara Lee's candidacy for mayor; Alameda and Port of Oakland reach settlement over airport construction noise, air quality

☕️MORNING BUZZ

—I was busy thinly slicing scallions while listening to the Oakland mayoral endorsement meeting hosted by the Metropolitan Greater Oakland Democratic Club on Tuesday’s night.

As I was dutifully separating white scallion from green, I heard the moderator announce the public portion of the Zoom meeting had concluded and its members would discuss the Oakland mayoral and District 2 council races in private.

I was not near my laptop and a long pause in the audio suggested to me that the meeting was over. But it wasn’t.

To my initial surprise, then glee, members of the MGO Democratic Club were candidly expressing their thoughts about the mayor’s race in my presence.

—The open and free-flowing dialogue gave a window into the mindset of older, progressive voters who expressed devotion to Barbara Lee, but nonetheless repeatedly questioned her age, parallels to the Ron Dellums era at City Hall, and her fitness to serve as mayor.

“Watching the debate I felt she was not up to the task,” said a 90-year-old member of the group who viewed last week’s mayoral debate.

“She had difficulty formulating her sentences. I didn’t feel she had any grasp of the nitty gritty of the issues, while Loren Taylor did,” she continued. “You can love your grandmother but she might not be the best candidate for a position.”

There was also concerns about Lee’s age, 78, if she were to win the special election and run for a four-year term in 2026. “I think getting us out of this fix is more than two-year process,” and suggested Lee may not possess the physical and mental acuity to continue past two years.

Others mentioned the advanced age of former President Joe Biden and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who passed away in office in 2023 at the age of 90.

“When people are in that position they have a really difficult time gracefully bowing out,” said another member.

Former Oakland Councilmember Dan Kalb, however, vouched for Lee’s vigor and physical ability to do the job. “Anybody that tells you that she doesn’t have the energy to do the job is flat-out wrong,” he said.

A member who said he’s known Lee for 20 years, worried about Lee’s legacy being tarnished, like Dellums’ before her, by a poor performance as Oakland mayor. “We don’t want another Ron Dellums situation. He wasn’t really up for the task,” he said.

“At the end he was not respected,” another said of Dellums, who preceded Lee in Congress. “He was used, and he was abandoned by the proponents that pushed him to run.”

During their roughly 20-minute conversation, mayoral candidate Loren Taylor was rarely mentioned.

Chris Peeples, a member of the AC Transit Board of Directors, praised Taylor for his knowledge of the city’s pension problem. Peeples, though, said he supports Lee.

—More inside:

• Is Oakland’s half-cent sales tax measure doing okay?

• Alameda and Bay Farm residents settle with Port of Oakland over future airport construction plans.

• San Leandro mayor uses state of the city to urge residents to support an infrastructure bond measure.

• Oakland needs to finish the fiscal year in the black, says budget administrator.

• Alameda County Fairgrounds’ stables will be shuttered next week.

• Campaign finance data for Wednesday.

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