Davka Days

As your local advocate and community organizer, I'm here to bring you the only comprehensive guide for San Leandro voters, election after election . I'm here to help you decide what to vote for (or against) along with reasons and receipts. This will be a long post, so buckle up! I'm starting with the local San Leandro measure, then the county races, then the local judgeships, then our federal district, then the state offices. If you're strapped for time, you can find the TL;DR version just below and then check out the details further down at your leisure. NB: this does not include any candidates that are uncontested and so won't be on your ballots, but feel free to reach out if you'd like information about them too. *** City of San Leandro Measure F: Yes County of Alameda District 3 Supervisor: Write-In Member, Board of Education, 4th Trustee Area: Aisha Knowles County Superintendent of Schools: Alysse Castro District Attorney: Pamela Price Judicial Offices Sup...

We finally have some much needed moral clarity from someone in a position of city leadership, albeit on a volunteer basis. This past Wednesday at its regular monthly meeting, Bob Bailey, Chair of the Community Police Review Board, issued the following statement on a recent police scandal involving Shaquille Coleman , an unhoused individual who was assaulted and kidnapped by SLPD before being dumped miles away in Oakland. His comments also debunked a simultaneous "scandal" alleged about SLPD Chief Averiett .  *** " Public statement from Bob Bailey @ April 15, 2026 CPRB Meeting As has been noted, the CPRB was unable to place on our agenda for discussion concerns about the ABC TV News stories about SLPD that were aired the week of 3/30 because it is a confidential personnel matter. I am choosing to speak on the matter as an individual member of the CPRB representing the community. My remarks do not speak for the CPRB as a whole. But I believe they are consistent with the ...

( Photo credit here  by artist Lia Tin) As American fascism continues its steady stride across the world , I'm back again with your regular roundup of warnings and strategies. This is especially important as the Trump regime has explicitly said it will attempt to interfere with and, if possible, even cancel midterm elections in America . So, what is San Leandro doing? Well, the City Council is still fighting amongst themselves, even as they face a deadline to fill an the seat vacated by former District 2 Councilman Bryan Azevedo. The usual suspects  from among our bottom barrel roster of local leaders are out campaigning  for the chance  –  but not from the voters. No, they'll need the vote of the very City Council currently flailing in dysfunction .  That leaves it to the people, per usual, to step up to protect our democracy. So let's talk about how you can get involved right now to build a better San Leandro. Because no one else is going to do it and t...

(Copy of Google Maps location) On MacArthur Boulevard you'll find a row of quaint storefronts. Coffee shops, burger joints, martial arts studios, and insurance agencies. Elbowing in the middle, at # 1039, is the headquarters of the Alameda County Republican Party. How did this happen? In the belly of the East Bay, where liberal and progressive politics dominate, how did the GOP set up shop to sell American fascism ? Well, let's find out. *** The exact founding date for the Alameda County Republican Central Committee isn't public. Filings show that it was registered with the FEC on July 26, 2004. The location on 1039 MacArthur Boulevard has been its mailing address every year since. Given San Leandro's history as a redlining sundown town surrounded by a suburban wall of White Supremacy, patrolled by racist police, with cross-burnings still going on as recently as 1989 , the choice starts to make sense. The current chair of the organization is Jeanne Solnordal , who o...

If you haven't heard the news about San Leandro City Councilmember Bryan Azevedo, well here it is .  The Feds have charged him with three criminal violations. One count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud. One count of false statements. And one count of criminal forfeiture. The charges were filed as "information" instead of an indictment, which may mean Azevedo waived his right to a grand jury and made a plea deal. The investigation predates the current regime and the lawyers that signed off on this are career prosecutors, not political appointees. They accuse Azevedo of lying to federal agents, taking bribes, and selling out the city. The scheme is allegedly related to a much larger conspiracy involving former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and a business groups run by the Duong family. *** I've been a fan of Bryan's since 2020 when he was out doing community clean ups and running a program to help feed people during the pandemic. I voted for him for c...

(Costanoan by Pastel @  Highway 880 Marina West Exit ) I remember the exact day that the Left in San Leandro died. It was actually a Monday evening downtown at City Hall. There was a city council meeting that night and it was packed. A group of fellow local activists, and even more from outside the community, had organized a protest against the then-recent war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. The protest erupted into civil disobedience that shut down the city council meeting, before ultimately descending into bigotry and violence. I know because I was there. This post has been a long time coming. Some have repeatedly asked me to share what happened. Just as many would like to pretend nothing happened that night. A few have even threatened me against ever writing about it. But I'd bet that there are also a lot of people who have absolutely no idea what happened. This isn't about spreading salacious stories for social media clout. It's about holding ourselves accountable as...