Motley appointed to spot on Oakland commission

Oakland Town Commission will have at least one new member. 

With the town’s qualifying period complete, Attorney Yumeko LaTrese Motley was announced as the new member to serve as the Seat 3 commissioner during the Oakland Town Commission meeting Tuesday, Dec. 9. There was no opposition for the seat; therefore, it will not be on the ballot. 

Motley will be taking Commissioner Sal Ramos’ seat. 

“I’m sure she’ll do a great job in my seat,” Ramos said. “I’m not going nowhere. I didn’t run, but I’ll still be involved in our town, and I’m going to be helping our town as much as I can in whatever way I can. I love this town.” 

Motley will serve a two-year term, completing the four-year term started in 2024 when Ramos was elected to fill an empty seat. 

Seat 4 Commissioner Joseph McMullen, who has been a commissioner since 2006, is running for reelection in the March 10, 2026, election. 

He will face Anne Fulton in the election for the four-year term. 

Fulton, along with her husband, Shaun Fulton, recently were recognized as Orange County District 1’s Citizen of the Year.

Fulton has lived in Oakland for 15 years and hopes to give people a voice, claiming there have been multiple occasions at commission meetings where residents were dismissed or felt they had been talked down by the commissioners. 

She hopes to defeat McMullen and said she is ready to fight for the residents of the town she calls home. 

Commissioner Kris Keller was reelected and excited to serve four more years. She was unopposed. 

“It’s just very humbling to have been given this opportunity to do this and to continue to do it,” she said. “I’ve loved it and enjoyed it and I hope to continue to do the best job that I can do to serve the town.”