Recalled Alameda County DA Pamela Price says she's running again; critics pounce

HAYWARD, Calif. - Pamela Price, who was recalled in 2024 as Alameda County's District Attorney, announced on Thursday that she's running again – and soon after she did that, critics jumped on her desire to come back to a position she was ousted from.

"I was not prepared to run," she said, answering a question at a news conference. "I was not contemplating to run. And a lot has changed since then. We have seen the invasion of Alameda County by federal agents and a political establishment and a district attorney who has said nothing. We've also seen increasingly the slide of our democracy. We cannot continue to be silent and let it happen." 

She specifically cited her anger about Jorge Bautista, a local pastor from Oakland, who witnesseses said was shot in the face with a pepper munitions projectile that was launched from a modified M320 grenade launcher at a protest in October when immigration officials were originally deployed to San Francisco, before Trump pulled them back. 

Price announces she's running again

Outlining a platform similar to the one she campaigned on in 2022, Price said: "I will be the district attorney who puts people first. I will go after corporate criminals and I will hold law enforcement officers accountable when they harm the residents of this county." 

Price also lashed out at President Donald Trump, ICE, her replacement DA and Jeffrey Epstein, adding personally that she is a survivor of sexual assault. 

"I understand the trauma and the pain that women and survivors and victims go through," Price said. 

She also blamed her recall effort on a small contingent of conservatives, specifically Piedmont billionaire Philip Dreyfuss, who she called a "single billionaire and his wannabe wealthy friends," who spent millions to recall her from office and "mislead the public and foster fear and division."

"Today, we say no, Alameda County is not for sale," she said, flanked by a few supporters including civil rights attorney Walter Riley, announcing she's running again for the top prosecutor job in June 2026. "Alameda County wants real justice." 

Ousted in 2024

Price was recalled last year, when the majority of voters ousted her because they felt her progressive criminal justice reforms – were too lenient.

But Price and her supporters argued she was working to reduce sentencing and systemic issues of racism. 

When she was asked specifically why she was running again, especially when she was recalled, Price didn't really answer the question.

Instead, she said: "The question really is, ‘What will I do better to protect public safety?’"

And then she talked about focusing on gun violence, and then repeated her criticism of Trump and ICE – not usually the purview of a local district attorney.

In terms of what she would do differently this next time around – if anything – Price said she would not automatically revive her past policies, but would "assess what is working and what is not." 

She said she would be guided by the needs of the office and the community. 

Price rarely held news conferences when she was DA and if she did, even more rarely took questions from reporters afterward. 

SAFE critics

In response to her announcement, PR consultant Sam Singer sent out a statement from the group, Save Alameda For Everyone, or SAFE, reminding the public that Price was removed from office with 63% of the vote.

SAFE called Price’s attempted comeback "an insult to victims, a threat to public safety, and a delusional bid to reclaim power she abused."

SAFE members said that when Price was DA, career prosecutors resigned, citing misconduct, retaliation, political interference, and a refusal to prosecute violent and repeat offenders. Victims' rights advocates said they didn't feel heard. 

"Under Pamela Price, violence exploded across every neighborhood," Carl Chan, Oakland Chinatown leader, said in a statement. "Our seniors were attacked, our businesses terrorized, and our community lived in fear. Since the recall, crime is finally falling. Her comeback attempt is dangerous, and we will fight it."

Brenda Grisham, a victims' rights advocate, said that Price "abandoned victims and betrayed families. We fought to recall her because people were dying while she protected violent offenders. Crime is finally going down because she’s gone. The community will never allow her back in power. My commitment has never changed, my priority has always been, and will always be, to protect the victims."

SAFE members also said that Price faced allegations involving her boyfriend’s inappropriate involvement in case discussions, raising ethical concerns about influence over criminal charging.

SAFE members are also crediting the new DA, Ursula Jones-Dickson, for overseeing an era where violent crime in Oakland "has taken its first meaningful drop in years — a direct reversal of the chaos and public endangerment that defined Pamela Price’s tenure."

Crime has been dropping in cities across the United States, and started to see a noticeable drop, including in Oakland, in December 2024. 

 

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