The gloves first came off when moderator Dave Clark, a news anchor for KTVU, asked the candidates to address the specter of ex-Mayor Thao, who was recalled by 60% of voters last November and now faces felony charges of bribery and conspiracy.

Oakland's two top candidates for the open mayoral seat — former Congresswoman Barbara Lee and former Oakland City Councilmember Loren Taylor — went head to head in a live debate. "This moment demands leadership and it demands the ability to bring different sectors of our community together to get the job done,

In a fiery exchange during Tuesday night’s debate between Oakland’s top mayoral candidates, former councilman Loren Taylor directed a sharp barb at his opponent, former Congresswoman Barbara Lee, claiming that the same supporters who rallied behind the city’s embattled former mayor,