March 30, 1999: Special Run-off State Assembly Election
Because Elihu Harris was the former mayor of Oakland, had previously represented the Assembly district from 1977-1991, had almost won the February election outright without the need of a run-off, and Audie Bock had received only 8.7% of the vote in the February election, Harris was heavily favored to win. On Election Day, he was in Sacramento negotiating his committee assignments.
But the California Democratic Party made a mistake that arguably created one of the biggest upsets in local political history. In an effort to boost voter turnout in black-majority, heavily Democratic precincts in Oakland, the party sent voters "chicken-dinner" vouchers that said that if they could bring their voter stub to certain locations proving that they had voted, they would receive a free chicken dinner. This created an outcry among voters who felt that it was a racist and demeaning gesture—and it badly hurt Elihu Harris' campaign.
On March 30, in a special run-off election with 15% turnout, Harris lost by less than 1,000 votes to Audie Bock.
It was one of the largest political upsets in California history—as Bock became the first Green Party candidate in the country to be elected to a state legislative body. Bock's victory was heralded by progressives across the country, but was minimized by the fact that she had been elected in a very low turnout special election—after a series of five special elections in less than twelve months.
Bock's victory ended the year-long Special Election musical chairs. In the last seven years, the East Bay has not had a special election for statewide or congressional office.
Read more about this topic: Special Election Musical Chairs
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