A association organizer who loves Tequila and motorcycles. A Navy adept who was a agent for Occupy Oakland. A gun-toting Army vet who wants anybody to backpack guns.
Meet some of the 14 bodies arduous Oakland Ambassador Jean Quan for her bench this November.
Among the rest, there's a dialysis business executive, a backroom professor, two burghal councilwomen, the city's accountant and a tax preparer.
In aloof 10 weeks, Oakland voters will accept to array through the assemblage of candidates and rank their admired three in a acreage that's the best awash anyone can remember.
In 2010, 10 candidates vied to be ambassador in the city's aboriginal ranked-choice election. In 2006, six competed in the June primary, area aloft Congressman Ron Dellums got abundant votes to abstain a runoff. In 2002, then-mayor Jerry Brown defeated alone one adversary in the March primary.
This year, the acclamation will be long. "The actuality that you got 15 (candidates), that's unprecedented," said Benjamin Bowser, a assistant of folklore at Cal State East Bay who has advised Oakland back 1986. "To be honest, I'd absent count."
At forums, artery festivals and abode parties beyond the city, the challengers accept approved to angle out and explain - sometimes in as little as 45 abnormal - how they achievement to ascendancy abomination or allure business.
"It does accomplish it added of a claiming to accomplish your articulation heard aloft the articulation of a crowd," said Joe Tuman, a San Francisco State backroom assistant who appear his antagonism aftermost year back there was aloof one added being running. "Fifteen bodies is a lot of people."
Colorful characters
Some angle out because they're bright characters. Ken Houston, a architect and association organizer, said he wasn't abiding he was accessible for aerial office. "Dude, I like to alcohol Tequila - I drank it aftermost night. I like motorcycles. I like women," he said back he appear his candidacy.
Jason Anderson, who served in the Navy, is accustomed by the Green Party and served as a agent for Occupy Oakland. Peter Liu wrote on his attack website that he'd action abomination by acclimation Oakland's badge arch to affair permits to backpack buried accoutrements to any law-abiding being who wants one.
Charles Williams has admonished Oakland's adolescence to "pull your pants up," and Saied Karamooz said that if he were elected, he would lower burghal flags to half-staff whenever an innocent being was dead in Oakland.
What's cartoon candidates
There are abounding affidavit why there's a cool in the cardinal of candidates, experts said.
Quan is a accessible bounden and her rivals are assertive they accept a adventitious to bound her.
The city's abridgement is booming and the demographics are changing: New, flush association are added fatigued to Oakland's balmy weather, assorted ability and adventurous spirit.
Mostly, though, experts said, the city's ranked-choice acclamation architecture gives the underdogs a faculty that they accept a attempt at winning. In 2010, Quan defeated her advantaged adversary by accession added second- and third-place votes, which were abundant to addition her into aboriginal place.
Now candidates achievement they can do the aforementioned affair and adios Quan.
"I anticipate what it reflects mainly is the angle that the chase is advanced accessible and that adverse to what happens in best races, the bounden is not abnormally advantaged so a lot of bodies capital to run," said Dan Siegel, a civilian rights advocate and aloft adviser to Quan who appear his antagonism in January.
Economic bang predicted
Mayoral candidates may additionally be acquisitive to be in the appropriate abode during the bread-and-butter bang in Oakland and the blow of the Bay Area.
"It is a action of bodies cerebration or activity a change is about to appear and that Oakland is about to access advanced accessible in a absolute sense," Bowser said. "And it would be nice to be ambassador back article like that happens."
But whatever the reasons, the sprawling acreage can be arresting for voters, said David McCuan, a political science assistant at Sonoma State University who studies Oakland politics.
Ranked-choice voting agency candidates charge body a affiliation with added candidates and ask voters to abutment as abounding as three altered candidates, McCuan said. That can accomplish it adamantine to see the differences amid the politicians.
At a 12-person mayoral appointment aftermost week, Councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan asked voters to accede her alike if they admired addition abroad more. "If you already accept a aboriginal choice, I respectfully ask for your additional vote," Kaplan told the crowd.
Complicated decisions
"Candidates are faced with a difficult way of advancement beneath ranked-choice voting because they aren't absolutely active to be first, they are active to be bottomward the acclamation and viable," McCuan said. "It compounds the accommodation afore voters."
It doesn't advice voters, McCuan said, that some candidates accept they don't angle abundant of a adventitious to win, but they break in the chase to use the belvedere to highlight issues they feel are important.
Nancy Sidebotham, a tax preparer in the Oakland hills who hasn't aloft abundant money or showed up in polls, said she realizes she apparently won't win.
"The capital acumen I am active is I am annoyed of the address and I appetite the accuracy out there," she said. "I don't affliction whether you like me or whether you accede with me. This is your burghal - get involved."
Outside a appointment at Burghal Hall aftermost anniversary area Sidebotham, Kaplan, Tuman and nine added candidates had almost a minute to acknowledgment questions, Oakland aborigine Courtney Paige circled the names of some of the candidates she had heard in her notepad. "I've narrowed it bottomward to four - no, five," she said, sighing. "I listened for two hours and I don't absolutely get how some of them are different. Or why they're running."
Oakland's 15 candidates
-- Jason Anderson, communications director
-- Ken Houston, contractor
-- Rebecca Kaplan, Oakland burghal councilmember at large
-- Saied Karamooz, clandestine area executive
-- Peter Liu, father, businessman, executive
-- Pat McCullough, technician/lawyer/entrepreneur
-- Bryan Parker, businessperson/university trustee
-- Jean Quan, ambassador of Oakland
-- Courtney Ruby, Oakland burghal auditor
-- Libby Schaaf, Oakland burghal councilmember
-- Nancy Sidebotham, tax preparer
-- Dan Siegel, civilian rights attorney
-- Joe Tuman, government/law professor
-- Charles Williams, engineering administrator administrator
-- Eric Wilson, nonprofit employee
Source: Oakland burghal clerk
Will Kane is a San Francisco Chronicle agents writer. E-mail: wkane@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @WillKane