Special to the Vanguard
Oakland, CA – The California Donor Table (CDT), a network of donors committed to building power in California’s communities of color and making lasting progressive political change, celebrates Pamela Price’s win to become Alameda County’s next District Attorney. Through an Independent Expenditure founded by Alameda County resident and CDT Executive Director Ludovic Blain with campaign manager Shay Franco-Clausen, an Afro-Latina who experienced incarceration, the organization became her largest backer, helping her win the first open seat election for this position in decades.
The California Donor Table seized the opportunity to support Pamela Price in the Alameda County District Attorney’s race, a progressive candidate with a long history of criminal justice reform, in an election with an open seat. The last time the seat was contested without an incumbent was 93 years ago. We believe election analysis will show that voters of color, who are more impacted by crime and mass 
incarceration, chose reform candidate Price. Unlike her predecessor, Price has pledged to not prosecute children as adults and has committed to ending racial disparity in prosecutions and mass incarceration of Black and Brown people.
“DA-elect Price is interrupting a long reign of racism and overcriminalization in one of the most allegedly liberal areas of the country,” says Blain. “We celebrate her courageous leadership and loving vision for our people.”
This was California Donor Table’s second success in a Bay Area district attorney race this year, having also invested in the winning re-election campaign of Contra Costa DA Diana Becton. This year, CDT invested over $750,000 in DA races across the state, including primary candidacies of reformers in Sacramento, Santa Clara, Orange County, and San Bernardino.
The California Donor Table, originally called the Progressive Era Project, began in 2005 with five donors from three families. Combining political strategy with community organizing and training, the project has developed and supported Black, Latinx, and Asian Pacific Islander progressive leaders, organizations, and candidates. To date, the table has invested and aligned approximately $52.5 million over 17 years. In total, it has financially supported 86 candidates, which are 88 percent people of color, 49 percent women, and 43 percent women of color.
