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Don Perata and Greg Hodge Easy Wins

State Senator Don Perata didn't hardly campaign because his contest was just about sewed up. He had lots of money, if he needed it; he had name recognition; good endorsements; and an opponent who was not organized and almost unrecognizable. So this wasn't a contest.

On the other hand, Community activist and lawyer Gregory Hodge campaigned strongly with City Councilwoman Nancy Nadel; he had lots of volunteers supporting him, and he won easily over his run-off challenger for the Oakland Unified School Board.

The only surprise is how important a seat on the Oakland School Board has become. This seems to be because Jerry Brown is trying to westle control of the schools from this elected body into his hands. []