Alameda County voters are deciding whether to keep Ursula Jones Dickson as District Attorney or return to office her recalled predecessor, Pamela Price. A third candidate, Gopal Krishan, is also on the ballot. The winner will serve a two-year term until the end of 2028, when Price's recall-shortened tenure would have originally concluded. If no candidate secures more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two finishers will advance to a November runoff.
Price, a civil rights attorney and the first Black woman elected to the post, was removed from office in late 2024 by a margin of 63 percent to 37 percent. Her recall centered on disagreements over her prosecutorial approach, which prioritized shorter prison sentences, alternatives to incarceration, and more lenient treatment of young defendants. Three months after her removal, county supervisors appointed Jones Dickson, a former prosecutor and judge, to fill the vacancy.
The race has crystallized into a debate over criminal justice philosophy. Price has characterized her successor as someone who "acts just like Donald Trump" and criticized Jones Dickson for dismissing cases against at least 11 law enforcement officers Price had charged or prosecuted on allegations of wrongful force or jail inmate neglect. Price vowed to restore policies Jones Dickson repealed, including those aimed at reducing prison sentences and limiting the ease of charging juveniles as adults. She has attributed her recall to racial animus rather than policy disagreement, stating that "the attacks that I experienced were not based on policy. They were personal and very racist."
Jones Dickson has positioned herself as a stabilizing force, noting that the office had four different leaders in four years before her appointment. She has advocated for stiffer penalties in certain cases, including mandatory minimum sentences for gun-related offenses. She has also criticized Price for being recused from prosecutions twice during her tenure due to bias concerns, framing ethical governance as central to her platform.
Krishan, an immigration and family law attorney based in Milpitas, has cast both candidates as too embedded in existing systems. He has called for stronger accountability of federal immigration agents involved in enforcement operations and advocated for tougher charging decisions on organized crime and violent offenses.
A substantial fundraising gap favors the incumbent. As of April 18, Jones Dickson had raised nearly $715,000, compared to approximately $104,000 for Price and about $27,000 for Krishan. The Alameda County Prosecutors' Association contributed $40,000 to Jones Dickson, her largest single donor. Price has loaned herself $19,000 to support her campaign.
