Price recall becoming more likely, as latest vote counts show two-thirds want her out

With over 211,000 votes counted, the recall attempt for progressive Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price appears to have been successful. 

The latest election results, released Thursday night, show  the yes for recall votes ahead, with nearly 65% of voters agreeing to recall Price.

On Wednesday, Price released a statement on her Instagram account urging patience and optimism while votes were still being counted at the Alameda County Registrar of Voters. The post’s comments received mixed reactions, with some support and some gleeful responses to the recall’s apparent success. 

“I am optimistic that when all the votes are counted, we will be able to continue the hard work of transforming our criminal justice system,” she said. 

In the meantime, the recall campaign for Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao also is supported by two-thirds of the voters, prompting Thao to concede to it Friday night. 

Price is the first Black woman to be elected Alameda County district attorney. She was part of a wave of DAs elected in 2022 who ran on platforms of progressive ideas for police accountability and lowering the rates of youth incarceration in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd in 2020. 

Price’s opponents raised millions of dollars for the recall campaign based on the accusation that Price was soft on crime. However, data from the DA’s Office suggest that prosecution rates during her tenure are in line with historical averages. 

Price did not return calls and emails to her office and her campaign on Friday.

Concerns about crime, particularly thefts and vandalism in Oakland, also prompted the Thao recall.

Brenda Grisham, principal officer of Save Alameda for Everyone, became a victims advocate after her son was shot and killed in 2010 and no one was ever charged in his death. Grisham helped lead the recall campaign against Price and believes it has garnered close to 200,000 votes so far because organizers were in the community and using social media to reach Alameda County voters.

If the recall proves successful, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors will have to develop a process to appoint an interim district attorney to serve until the next general election in 2026. If Price is recalled she may still hold the office until February while the board creates a process according to information obtained by KRON4.

If the recall proves successful, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors will have to develop a process to appoint an interim district attorney to serve until the next general election in 2026. That means Price likely would stay in office until January or February, board President Nate Miley told KRON4.

Grisham is hoping the next district attorney will hold people accountable for their crimes and make the office “more equitable for people on both sides.”   

Additionally, California voters approved Proposition 36 with over 70% of the vote. The ballot measure will increase penalties for certain theft and drug crimes, rolling back changes that Proposition 47 brought in 2014. 

This story will be updated as more results become available.

(Top photo of Pamela Price addressing supporters, by Richard H. Grant)

ELECTION RESULTS: Poll voters overwhelmingly favor Thao and Price recalls