By David M. Greenwald
Executive Editor
Oakland, CA –It’s over now and Pamela Price has made history becoming the first Black District Attorney of Alameda County. The latest returns show her exploding to a 27,000 vote lead, 53-47. It was apparent after Thursday’s total that she couldn’t be caught. It was confirmed with Friday’s count.
In a statement on Twitter, Price said, “WE DID IT! Tonight’s numbers are a confirmation of our victory.” She continued, “We knew this election was going to be an exclamation point in history for Alameda County. The DA’s office has been an untouched tower of legacy appointed and unchallenged District Attorneys.”
Pamela Price added, “For the last ten years, the office has stood in the way of the progressive reforms ushered in by our California legislature and endorsed by Alameda County voters.”
She noted, “We have the opportunity to bring justice reform to Alameda Co. There are dozens of progressive DAs across this country making a real difference in lives of victims, families & communities. I know we can build a system for Alameda Co. w/ accountability, transparency & equity.”
https://twitter.com/PPriceCares/status/1593736294189785088
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The lead by Pamela Price grew for a third consecutive day and has now swelled to more than 14,000 votes. While opponent Terry Wiley has yet to officially concede, the campaign told the Vanguard on Thursday afternoon that they believe there is no realistic path to victory for Wiley.
“I think the lead is insurmountable with the number of remaining ballots —voters have overwhelming called for real justice reform in Alameda County,” Ryan LaLonde tweeted on Thursday.
In an email to the Vanguard, he said he believes there are about 60,000 votes to be counted and that Wiley would need to win over 70 percent to win—which is simply not going to happen.
In a phone interview late on Thursday, Price told the Vanguard, “I am excited. I’m 
humbled, I’m grateful, grateful, grateful to the people of Alameda County and to my campaign team, and bigger than the campaign team, the whole community that came out for justice. I’m so proud of the people of Alameda County that just voted like amazingly. Turnout is amazing, and I’m just so honored to be part of the Alameda County community.”
Price had fallen just short of a majority in the June primary. However, Wiley had secured key endorsements from leaders such as outgoing DA Nancy O’Malley, Attorney General Rob Bonta and his wife, Assemblymember Mia Bonta.
On Election night, Wiley had a narrow lead but Price and her campaign always believed that the numbers would be on her side and each new count has borne that out until, finally on Tuesday, she pulled into the lead, then expanded that lead on Wednesday and Thursday.
“What this means for the community is real change, a real shot at public safety. All of us want to feel safe. We all want our children to be safe, and everybody should have has the right to have their children be able to walk and play in neighborhoods,” Price said.
She continued, “It means building up our community, taking back the DA’s office, reclaiming it as an institution that’s supposed to serve, that will serve the community, is going to strengthen us, it’s going to make us safer. It’s going to give our kids hope. We’re going to give our children… and people who make a mistake won’t be destroyed. They’ll be held accountable, and we’re going to hold each other accountable.”
Price said, “And I want the community to hold me accountable as the District Attorney for doing my job. And I’m going to hold the police accountable. I will do my job.
“And that will make the community safer because we’re all going to be pulling together towards a better vision of public safety and a vision of change for our community. One that’s not based on racism and punishment and punitive… and an attitude where we don’t care if people are in trouble or hurting. We know hurt people, hurt people, and we’ve got to begin to heal people who have been hurt and, and help the people who are hurting people understand why that does not work for us.”
Price said, “It’s not okay. And so that’s what I’m really optimistic about, that the community is now invested and will be in charge of this office.”
Once certified, Price would be sworn in on January 3. They don’t have official plans at this point.
“The transition is going to be amazing. We are putting together and have put together already an amazing team of people who are invested in the community who have been active in this community, who understand this community,” Price said.
“Throughout this campaign. I said proximity matters. We want people who know Alameda County, who have invested in Alameda County, who want to see us get better and stronger, and who are able to be accountable to the community and to connect and communicate with the community,” she continued. “That’s really what it will look like.”
She concluded, “It’s a diverse, we have a diverse transition team because Alameda County is incredibly diverse, and so we are really proud to be bringing people from all different communities and all different parts of the county together to look at what the DA’s office, what we can impact in the short term, in the midterm and in the long term.”
