OAKLAND >> Former Rep. Barbara Lee, a veteran of Congress and champion of progressive politics in the East Bay, has formed a campaign finance committee to run for mayor of Oakland.

Filings with both the city and Secretary of State’s office indicated a new committee, Barbara Lee for Oakland Mayor 2025, that would operate as the fundraising arm of Lee’s eventual campaign.

The former congresswoman, who just departed her Congressional seat after serving 26 years, has not actually pulled papers with the city to file candidacy for its top political post — the ordinary first step for launching a campaign.

But the newly formed committee served as enough confirmation for Oakland’s political circles to begin preparing Monday for a mayoral race that is likely to be dominated by Lee’s gravity as a storied East Bay progressive icon.

“This is exciting,” said lobbyist Isaac Kos-Read, who had contemplated a mayoral campaign in the event that Lee did not run. “I really think she can bring us together.”

The special election, set for April 15, is on an expedited timeline. With the deadline to file coming up on Jan. 17, there are already 13 candidates who have either pulled papers or filed to run.

But Lee’s presence in the race may supersede the city’s ingrained political divides and align, in rare fashion, support from both labor unions and the business community.

Leaders in Oakland who normally disagree on key local issues have said they believe Lee can unite the troubled town, where a perilous budget crisis and toxic political landscape led ex-Mayor Sheng Thao to be recalled by voters in November.

Others question whether Lee, 78, can smoothly transition from federal lawmaking to governing a city — prompting memories of past political heavyweights, like Ron Dellums and Jerry Brown, whose mayoral tenures in Oakland earned mixed reviews.

If she does file to run, Lee will face competition from Loren Taylor, a former council member, and Renia Webb, a former chief of staff to Thao — the only two candidates with some political experience who have said they’d stay in the race even if Lee runs.

Seneca Scott, an outspoken leader of Thao’s recall effort, on Monday urged candidates who might take on Lee to embrace the philosophy of the recall campaign, which often centered around hardline views on crime, policing and public spending.

“We need a vision for Oakland’s future — both urgent and long-term — that inspires action and rekindles hope,” Scott wrote in a social media post. “Otherwise, Lee wins without breaking a sweat.”

Lee’s representatives have said the congresswoman is taking the idea of running for mayor seriously and has held numerous meetings in recent weeks with city officials about the state of the budget and homelessness.

Oakland’s crime numbers are noticeably improving, but upcoming budget cuts could levy around 91 layoffs to city workers and temporarily close up to six of the city’s 25 fire stations.

Lee, who ran unsuccessfully last year for a U.S. Senate seat, left Congress this month after a long tenure representing Oakland, Alameda, Berkeley and San Leandro.

A native of El Paso, Texas, she first arrived to Oakland in the early 1970s as a student at Mills College. As a legislator, she has often weighed in on the city’s local issues, including the departure of the A’s and a faculty strike in Oakland schools.

More recently, Lee opposed Thao’s recall as mayor. She has since said little publicly about running for the job, noting in a December social media post that the decision was not one she’d take lightly.

Call or text Shomik Mukherjee at 510-905-5495 or email him at shomik@bayareanewsgroup.com.