Richmond’s mayor, who was accused of antisemitism last year for a series of social media posts, appears to have lost his re-election bid as he trails behind two other candidates in the June 2 primary.
As of the most recent vote count, Eduardo Martinez is in third place behind Claudia Jimenez, a city councilmember, and Ahmad Anderson, a longtime local political figure and former vice president of the Richmond NAACP. The top two candidates will face off in the November general election.
In December, Martinez used his LinkedIn page to share conspiracy theories about the Bondi Beach mass shooting in Australia that killed 15 people attending a Hanukkah event. One LinkedIn post called the mass shooting a “false flag” operation; another suggested it was committed by a “former IDF soldier.” According to court documents, the two suspects in the shooting supported “extremist ideology linked to the Islamic State.”
Faced with backlash over the social media posts, Martinez eventually deleted some of them and issued an apology. Jewish groups and more than 80 elected officials from other Bay Area cities called on him to resign.
Martinez’s LinkedIn account, where he repeatedly shared antisemitic tropes and intense criticism of Israel, is no longer active.
His campaign did not immediately respond to J.’s request for comment.
The Jewish Community Relations Council Bay Area, StandWithUs Northern California and a group that sprang up to demand Martinez’s resignation celebrated the latest election results in a June 5 Instagram post.
“This is a victory for everyone who has stood with us in confronting antisemitism and demanding accountability,” read the post from an account called Mayor Martinez Must Resign! “Richmond voters sent a clear message: antisemitism has no place in public office.… Together, we made clear that elected leaders who promote hate and division must be held accountable.”
The LinkedIn posts did not mark the first time Martinez’s public statements resulted in backlash from Jewish advocacy groups.
Last August, the Anti-Defamation League’s regional office condemned Martinez’s appearance at the People’s Conference for Palestine in Detroit. While delivering a speech at the conference, Martinez likened the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people to someone lashing out after being bullied on the playground. Martinez also said the question of whether he supported Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by the United States and other countries, was “complicated.”
Within weeks of the Oct. 7 attack and the launch of Israel’s war to fight Hamas and free more than 250 hostages held in Gaza, Martinez introduced a resolution condemning Israel and calling for a ceasefire. The city council voted 5-1 to pass the resolution following contentious public comments at the meeting.
Jimenez, the current frontrunner in the mayoral race, sided with Martinez when another Richmond councilmember, Cesar Zepeda, introduced a censure against Martinez in January for “engaging in conduct that reinforced antisemitic narratives.” The censure motion failed.
Rabbi Julie Saxe-Taller of Temple Beth Hillel in Richmond told J. on Monday that although she disagreed with Jimenez’s vote in January, the councilmember has “taken initiative to build a relationship with me which has included listening and considering that a different vote might have been right.”
“This doesn’t enable us to predict the future, but it shows a commitment to learning and engaging with our community,” Saxe-Taller said.
After filing in March to run for mayor, Jimenez was endorsed by the Richmond Progressive Alliance, a prominent grassroots group that previously supported Martinez. In February, members of the group expressed concerns that Martinez’s social media controversy would hurt his chances of re-election, Richmondside reported.
Tye Gregory, CEO of the Bay Area JCRC, told J. that he’s glad Martinez appears to have lost but isn’t ready to celebrate yet.
“It’s a big win that Martinez was unelectable,” Gregory said. But “Jimenez voted every time with the mayor. From a policy perspective, she is just as egregious. I think that this is going to be an uphill battle.… The community should continue to engage in this race, but it’s going to be challenging to beat her.”
Anderson, who is poised to advance to the general election alongside Jimenez, has positioned himself as the more moderate candidate in the race.
“When it comes to speaking on foreign affairs, my responsibility as mayor will be to take care of home first,” Anderson told J. “I appreciate Martinez’s work in the community. The role is not easy. But I believe new leadership is needed to move forward.”
Ballots continue to be counted in Contra Costa County. Its elections office is expected to update the vote count on June 10 and finalize primary results by July 2.