‘No’ on Measure Z prevailing with 50% of vote tallied

The polls have closed and the nail-biter on the national stage is also evident here in Alameda.

Early Wednesday morning numbers from the Alameda County Registrar of Voters reflect numbers from some 22,000 ballots with approximately 25,000 votes left to count.

Councilwoman Malia Valla seems the only certainty in the City Council race with 8,165 votes, almost 23 percent. If this holds, Vella will take her seat as Vice Mayor when the new City Council is sworn in. Traditionally the highest vote getter in a City Council race assumes this role.

This marks the second time that Vella will serve as Vice Mayor, a seat currently held by John Knox White. Knox White will continue to served as a Councilman.

The Registrar of Voters is reporting that Trish Spencer has received 7,093 votes, or 19.94 percent While Amos J. White is currently third with 7,059 or 19.85 percent of the votes.

This razor-thin margin means that only time will tell who will win the second City Council seat. Council member Jim Oddie and Gig Cordiga are also in the running

Oddie currently has 6,759 votes or 19.01 percent and Cordiga has 6,371 votes or 17.91 percent of the votes. The top two vote getters win the two council seats.

Kevin Kearny and Kevin Kennedy ran unopposed and will retain their positions as City Auditor and City Treasurer respectively.

Wednesday morning’s tally show that Jennifer Williams will likely retain her seat on the Alameda Unified School District Board of Trustees.

If the vote holds, Heather Little will join Williams as the board’s newest member. Beth Aney and Megan Sweet’s current numbers have led to a nail-biter not unlike
the race between Spencer and White for the City Council. The margin is currently just 47 votes.

Measure AA, which — among other actions — would amend the City Charter to “clarify functions and duties of the City Council and and City Manager is passing handily with a 75 percent “yes” vote. The measure would also “authorize the city attorney to prosecute misdemeanors and update language in city document to be
gender-neutral.”

Measure Z appears to be failing. The 18,688 votes in the Wednesday morning tally show 11,035 “no” votes to 7,653 “yes votes — a 59 to 41 percent margin. If this vote holds then Article 26 will remain in the City Charter.

The article, which many consider discriminatory, prohibits the building of multi-unit dwellings. If it passes, the measure would lift a ban on multi-family dwellings in
Alameda.

See the current tallies for all the measures and state propositions on the ballot on page 3.

The numbers in this story reflect those on the Registrar of Voters website. To see the very latest number visit www.acvote.org/index.