Oakland council to vote on mayoral recall, budget cuts

OAKLAND, Calif. - When the Oakland City Council on Tuesday, members are expected to approve a recall election against Mayor Sheng Thao.

The council is expected to  schedule the recall election vote for Nov. 5, the same time as the general election, which would save an estimated $3.7 million dollars as opposed to a standalone vote.

The recall process was already underway as critics have been pounding the mayor shortly after she fired the Oakland Police Chief last year.

Recall organizers collected enough signatures to put the issue on the ballot two day before the FBI raided the mayor's home on June 20.

It's clear what agents were looking for and Thao has denied any wrongdoing.

The council is also scheduled to discuss the city's large budget deficit, caused by, in part, a drop in revenue generated by the real estate transfer tax.

Councilmembers are looking to make cuts in an effort to close a budget shortfall of $177 million. 

On Friday, they held a special meeting to discuss options, which included freezing job vacancies at the police and fire departments.

However, the union that represents Oakland police officers is demanding that the city council reject all proposed cuts to the budget.

These budget cuts "place the public and police at extreme physical danger and jeopardize the future of the city, residents, workers and businesses," OPOA Vice President Tim Dolan said in a statement provided by PR consultant, Sam Singer. 

"The mayor’s budget is based on the false hope of a Coliseum sale," Dolan added. "Mayor Thao’s proposal as well as the proposed alternatives by councilmembers Nikki Bas, Carroll Fife, Rebecca Kaplan and Dan Kalb will all drive the city into bankruptcy and chaos."

Police union leaders want the city to hire an outside budget expert to provide fiscal direction to the mayor and the council.