Lesbian city councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan of Oakland established an exploratory committee for mayor Tuesday.
According to the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund, the popular Kaplan could benefit from a new system in which Oakland voters rank their favored candidates in order of first, second, and third. The former Transit District Board member was elected to the council with 62% of the vote in 2008.
Kaplan, 39, graduated from MIT, Tufts University, and the Stanford Law School.
"If she runs and wins," the Victory Fund reports, "Oakland would become third-largest city in the U.S. to elect an openly gay or lesbian mayor, behind Houston, Texas, and Portland, Ore."
Out Councilwoman May Run for Oakland Mayor















