City of Oakland · Statewide General Election
Oakland City Auditor
Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.
This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.
On the ballot
- Michael C. Houston — Oakland City Auditor · Incumbent
This person independently audits how the city spends its money and runs its programs.
Only one candidate qualified for this seat. Incumbent Michael C. Houston, elected in 2024, appears unopposed for the second time running — so this contest is settled and your vote here does not change the outcome.
The city auditor is Oakland's independent watchdog: an elected office that audits how the city spends money and runs programs, reporting to the public rather than to the mayor or council. A four-year term.
With no opponent, the useful question is not who to choose but what the office has produced and what to watch next. An unopposed return means accountability for this watchdog runs through its own published audits and the press rather than through the ballot.
Michael C. Houston
The sitting city auditor, elected in 2024 and unopposed again. Over the past two years his office has published audits of illegal dumping, the vacant-property tax, the resources given to police-oversight bodies, and how the city collects business taxes (per the Oaklandside).
Strengths
A documented body of work — audits spanning dumping, the vacant-property tax, police oversight and business-tax collection — in a term where each touched a live city dispute.
Trade-offs
Running unopposed twice means the office's direction has never been tested against an alternative at the ballot.
Keep in mind
An auditor's value shows in whether findings change anything. The audits are public; whether the city acted on them is the measure his next term should be judged on.
Financial info
- Self-funding
Michael C. Houston
$2,500 raised
- Self-funding$2,500100%
1Figures are CA Form 460 filings through 2026-06-30, per the Oakland Public Ethics Commission's e-filed transaction exports, retrieved 2026-08-22.
Source review: Very strong (94/100) · 4 cited sources
Official records anchor this contest, with several source types checked for context.
- oaklandca.gov (opens in a new tab)Oakland City Clerk — Nov 2026 Election Qualified Candidate List (final, in ballot order, with ballot designations)
- oaklandside.org (opens in a new tab)Oakland City Clerk qualified-candidate list for November 3, 2026, as published by The Oaklandside (2026-08-10)
- ballotpedia.org (opens in a new tab)Ballotpedia — City elections in Oakland, California (2026)
- netfile.com (opens in a new tab)Oakland Public Ethics Commission — e-filed campaign-finance transactions (NetFile)
Last updated August 22, 2026.