Rhodesia Ransom is a proud resident of Tracy, California who has dedicated two decades in service to her community. Known for her ability to lead as a visionary and inspire people with innovative ideas, Rhodesia Ransom is always a catalyst for progress. She attributes her passion for servant leadership to the time she spent as a child working alongside her grandmother— connecting vulnerable families with resources. 

After earning her BA in Political Science from San Francisco State University and a Master’s in Public Administration, Rhodesia worked in private sector management and went on to teach graduate-level courses in public finance and business management. She has used her experience and education to create solutions that address the concerns of the community. She is proud of her service on community boards and commissions including United Way and the Tracy Police Activities League.  

As co-founder and former executive director of Sow A Seed Community Foundation, Ms.  Ransom championed mentoring and mental health programs for San Joaquin County youth. Her efforts have helped thousands of youth access stigma-free counseling and support services in public schools. 

As an elected council member for the City of Tracy, Rhodesia Ransom earned a reputation for  challenging the status quo and tackling important policies like investing in our youth, reducing  homelessness, diversifying housing, and improving government transparency. She co-authored the city’s Equity and Empowerment Initiative to promote policies and protections to shield the community from unjust policies and ensure equitable conditions for staff and constituents. She also led the city’s first homeless strategic plan which was the catalyst for the first warming shelter. When the COVID-19 pandemic revealed the proliferation of poverty and a lack of access to healthcare, Rhodesia Ransom worked with Planned Parenthood Mar Monte to bring a testing site to Tracy, so residents could access testing in their own community. 

Ransom’s service to the community includes seven years on the Tracy Planning Commission where she performed a critical oversight role on new residential and commercial development projects. She has also served on the San Joaquin County Civil Grand Jury providing oversight to public agencies across our county to improve efficiency and service delivery. 

In 2021, Rhodesia Ransom was appointed District Director for Hon. Congressman Josh Harder to serve constituents in the 10th Congressional District. She is honored to continue her advocacy and service to the community in this new role. 

 Mark Williams is an experienced, and respected governmental affairs professional, political consultant and native of the East Bay. Since 2006, he has continued to hone his skill set as a political consultant, that can develop successful strategies, navigate obtaining key endorsements, and build winning coalitions by serving as staff, managing, and consulting for multiple campaigns to successfully elect multiple Democratic candidates to public office. He has worked on campaigns for candidates, measures, and initiatives throughout the East Bay.

Mark has worked on campaigns in both Alameda and Contra Costa counties for candidates such as Bob Wieckowski for Assembly and Senate, and Joan Buchanan for Assembly. He has worked on measure campaigns such as Alameda County’s Measure BB sales tax, AC Transit’s C1 parcel tax and BART’s measure RR bond.

In addition to successfully managing his election and reelection to the AC Transit Board of Directors, in 2010, 2014 and 2018 respectfully, Mark also served as interim campaign manager for Jovanka Beckles for Assembly.

Mark has also worked as a political organizer for both the Alameda Labor Council and Service Employees International Union 1021. He also served as a Communications Coordinator and founding member of the Alameda County Assessor’s office Public Relations Unit.

Most recently, Mark worked as a campaign consultant for City of Fremont Councilmember Raj Salwan’s successful 2020 reelection campaign. Mark also proudly serves as an elected official on both the Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District, and the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee.

His election to the AC Transit Board of Directors in 2010, at the age of 24 made him the youngest person ever elected to the board, in addition to being one of the youngest elected officials, in the history of California and the United States. Mark has been active in the Democratic Party for over 15 years, and has proudly served as an associate, alternate and recently elected member of the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee, representing Assembly District 20, and as an elected and appointed delegate to the California Democratic Central Committee.

Mark is committed to using his passion for politics, and opportunity to serve as an elected leader of the Democratic Party, to support and elect the next generation of leaders to public office, especially candidates of color, and those that want to work as political staffers and consultants.

In his spare time, Mark supports the Alameda County Food Bank and personally provided meals and needed supplies to unsheltered residents throughout Northern California. He is a lifelong Warriors, Athletics and Raiders fan even though they have divorced Oakland TWICE!

Mark holds both an Associate of Language Arts, and Associate of Social Science degree from Laney College and attended Tuskegee University.

The youngest of three children of a Black military family who migrated to California from North Carolina, Dr. Margaret Fortune grew up in Sacramento where she is a public school educator and community activist. Dr. Fortune founded a K-12 public school system of nine schools located in Sacramento and San Bernardino with over 2,300 students with a mission to close the Black achievement gap by preparing kids for college.

Margaret serves on the board of Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network, Sacramento and is an active member of the education committee of the San Bernardino NAACP where she is a lifetime member. She writes a monthly column called Let’s Talk Black Education with Dr. Margaret Fortune that appears in ten Black newspapers in California, including her hometown paper, The Sacramento Observer. Fortune recently launched a podcast by the same name.

Growing up in the State Capitol, as a child Margaret worked her first political campaign for State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Wilson Riles when her father hoisted her up on his shoulders to pin a campaign sign on a telephone pole.  Dr. Fortune caught the political bug at a young age and her passion has continued ever since. Margaret is a member of the El Dorado County Democratic Central Committee, a delegate on California’s Democratic State Central Committee, is the Recording Secretary for the California Democratic Party Black Caucus and is on the board of the Sacramento Black Women’s Democratic Club.

Throughout Margaret’s 25 years of public service, she has been an education advocate for Black children. She has been an education advisor to two California governors, chaired the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and is a trustee emeritus of the California State University. Dr. Fortune earned her Bachelor’s degree in political science from UC Berkley, a Master’s in Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and was awarded an honorary doctorate by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.