March 6th Update: Thank You for Our Strong, First Place Showing.
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Oh, what a night! While many votes remain to be counted, our Community and Labor-powered Coalition’s momentum is undeniable—thank you, District 5 voters, for propelling us to a commanding first place finish in the Primary Election!
Your confidence in our vision for an East Bay for All of Us—and our commitment to safe neighborhoods, housing for all, compassionate and effective solutions to homelessness, and healthcare for the most vulnerable in our communities, clearly resonated.
My thanks to the hundreds of Labor and Community volunteers who spent countless hours—rain or shine—hosting house parties, knocking on doors in every community, and texting/ phoning to encourage voters to participate in this critical election. Ours is truly a grassroots powered campaign that literally engaged thousands of voters not through fancy campaign tactics, but by the best way possible—neighbor talking to neighbor, listening sessions, and heartfelt discussions on the issues.
It's not easy to meet today’s difficult challenges. I promise to continue working every hour of every day to meet our large scale, significant urban issues head-on. And I will be unflinching in my commitment to engaging and listening to the diverse communities we represent to ensure effective solutions and to honor our shared commitment to truly serve the most vulnerable amongst us.
Finally, my sincere congratulations to each and every one of the District 5 supervisorial candidates who stood for election yesterday. In today’s tough times, standing up and putting a vision forward is gratifying and hard work. Healthy debate and different visions are the foundation for ensuring that voters continue to feel motivated to participate in our democratic process.
I am so filled with gratitude, continued purpose and commitment. Thank you all, and onwards to November!
Warmly,
Nikki Fortunato Bas
Proven Progressive Leadership
Oakland City Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas is a lifelong community organizer, nonprofit director, Filipina-American, and working Mom guided by her lived experiences as the daughter of immigrants whose struggles inspired her to lead coalitions fighting for a living wage, an end to food insecurity, and access to affordable healthcare and housing.
Nikki spent decades successfully organizing Chinatown garment workers, building the student anti-sweatshop movement, and advocating for fair pay and working conditions for the East Bay’s most vulnerable residents. Previously the Executive Director of the Partnership for Working Families and the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy, she has been honored on multiple occasions for her transformative, visionary leadership. One example is receiving the Mario Savio Young Activist Award for her work organizing the student anti-sweatshop movement at UC Berkeley and across the country.
Currently serving as Oakland's City Council President, Nikki leads the fight for an East Bay where every family is healthy, safe, and housed. She led efforts to help secure $350,000,000 for up to 2,400 housing units for homeless and working families; established a $14,000,000 Fund to assist low-income housing insecure tenants to purchase homes; expanded violence prevention and anti-sex trafficking programs; and launched Fire Department mobile crisis teams to address mental health and 911 calls.
As our County Supervisor, Nikki’s priorities are the “three H’s”: Homelessness, Housing, Healthcare. She believes bold leadership to end homelessness, expand job creation, and provide comprehensive mental health/substance abuse programs, and transitional housing are necessary. Nikki will fight for housing that working families can afford and ensure every family has access to quality healthcare. Nikki’s principles will never be for sale.
A 26-year Oakland Grand Lake neighborhood resident, Nikki and her spouse Brad are the proud parents of daughter Balana, a second-year college student.
Selected Leadership Positions:
✔ Executive Board and Housing Committee member, Association of Bay Area Governments
✔ Board Member, Youth Ventures Joint Powers Authority
✔ Executive Director, Partnership for Working Families
✔ Executive Director, East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy
✔ Member, National League of Cities Re-imagining Public Safety Task Force
