It was held on November 5, 2024 concurrent with the statewide and nationwide general elections.

Sheng Thao was elected mayor in 2022 with a margin of 0.6% after instant-runoff voting.

Her administration attracted criticism for firing its Chief of Police in early 2023 following a report he mishandled internal investigations,[1] failing to submit an application for a $2 million retail theft prevention grant,[2] and blamed for Oakland's relatively high crime rate.

[3] Thao's home was raided by the FBI in June 2023, reportedly as part of a corruption investigation into kickbacks to a local contractor in return for 2022 campaign contributions.

[6] Former mayor Libby Schaaf[7] and former Oakland councilmember Loren Taylor[8] supported the recall, while U.S. Congress Barbara Lee[9] and former mayor Jean Quan[10] opposed it.