In tight race to lead Oakland, Loren Taylor gets unexpected endorsement from Bay Area mayor

OAKLAND — San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan has endorsed Loren Taylor in next month’s Oakland mayoral election, bucking the trend of near-unanimous support among Bay Area politicians for Taylor’s opponent, Barbara Lee.

“I want a leader who’s going to be honest and direct with the community when he’s campaigning,” Mahan said Thursday at a news conference in Oakland’s Laurel neighborhood.

“Not just the ‘bad news later’ when he’s forced to do something he doesn’t want to do,” Mahan added, “but to say upfront, ‘Here’s how we’re going to get through this. It’s going to be rough but there’s light at the end of the tunnel.’ ”

The endorsement further signals Mahan’s split from the Democratic establishment amid a turbulent time for the party, which is grappling with its political future even in the Bay Area’s most progressive corners.

And it provides a rare ally for Taylor from among the region’s established leaders, as the former councilmember attempts to overcome Lee’s political name recognition as a popular veteran of Congress.

Taylor has sought to bill himself as a pragmatic critic of powerful “special interests,” which many Oakland voters interpret as a salvo against the unions that represent city workers.

The most meaningful policy divide between Lee and Taylor appears to be how soon each would consider layoffs or demands of salary concessions from the unions, which through a political committee are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to support Lee.

Mahan, a former Silicon Valley tech executive who was first elected in 2022 against South Bay labor heavyweight Cindy Chavez, is seen as representing a shift in the seats of region’s political power.

The mayor has shaped his rhetoric around a “data-driven” approach to governing — a style in which he and Taylor have found a kinship.

“We should embrace innovation whole-heartedly,” Taylor said at the news conference.

“So many of those folks who are fueling the tech industry live in Oakland,” he added. “Are we going to ostracize the significant number of Oaklanders who live here and want to raise their children in an environment that’s safe?”

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Staff writers Devan Patel and Grace Hase contributed reporting.