Marshawn Lynch considering run for Oakland mayor

In a surprising turn of events, former Seattle Seahawks legend Marshawn Lynch might be considering running for mayor of the city of Oakland. He mentioned the possibility of making the jump into running for public office on Thursday via his podcast that he does with Gavin Newsom and Doug Hendrickson.

The title of the podcast is “Politickin’ with Gavin Newsom, Marshawn Lynch, and Doug Hedrickson.” The episode of the podcast is named, “Mayor Beastmode”. In the episode, Gavin Newsom essentially breaks down the pollster data and explains to Lynch he is very popular among Oakland residents.

Gavin Newsom is an American politician and businessman that is currently serving as the governor of the state of California. Doug Hendrickson is the longtime agent of Lynch.

It’s important to note that the current mayor of Oakland, Mayor Sheng Thao, is extremely unpopular at the moment for a number of reasons. She is embroiled in a scandal following an FBI raid of her home this summer. It was part of an investigation into alleged public corruption involving California Waste Solutions, a private company that handles trash and recycling pickup in Oakland. She is currently up for recall, which will be voted on the November 5th ballot.

If a majority votes yes on the recall, Thao will be removed from office. Her term, which is slated to end in 2026, will instead end this year. And it would mark the first time in Oakland’s history that a mayor has been removed from office early. The exact date of her removal is unclear. The official will have to leave office if a majority of voters approve a recall, but it doesn’t say exactly when.

In the podcast, Doug Hendrickson notes that Thao is “as good as gone,” but it’s important to note that won’t be official until November 5th.

Newsom explained the pollster numbers to Lynch in the podcast, noting that he has a 43% favorable opinion from voters. And a 7% unfavorable opinion from voters. Which Newsom explained is really good. “That’s off the charts, brother,” Newsom noted. When pollsters read his biography to respondents, he has a 61% favorability rating. His unfavorability rating then climbs to 23%. Which Newsom noted is “still off the charts.”

Lynch didn’t exactly commit to running for mayor on the podcast episode, but he didn’t exactly shoot the idea down, either. “We don’t want to jump the gun just yet, from what I was told,” Lynch said. “I gotta good internal team, you know, and I want to make sure I take this off-line with my internal team and make sure this is something that we really wanna do.”

Lynch, 38 years old, has zero experience in politics. The former Cal Golden Bear running back does have a strong presence in Oakland though. He’s from the city and attended high school at Oakland Technical High School. Lynch is very involved with the Fam 1st Family Foundation–a charity he co-founded with former NFL veterans Josh Johnson and Marcus Peters.

Here is a brief bit about the foundation and the mission from their website: “Formed in 2006 and established in 2011 led by NFL athletes, Joshua Johnson, Marshawn Lynch, and Marcus Peters. The Fam 1st Family Foundation has embodied the intrinsic family values of loyalty and leadership to impact the lives of Oakland’s disenfranchised youth. Through the transference of family values, the Fam 1st Family Foundation strengthens Oakland’s fractured community and provides critical aid to residents in need.”