Recently retired Congresswoman Barbara Lee has just opened a campaign account for a run for Oakland mayor, and she's reportedly close to making a final decision about whether she will seek the job.The 78-year-old Lee has been courted by Oakland city leaders in recent weeks to step into the role of mayor following the recall of Sheng Thao, and what's expected to be a turbulent year as Oakland faces a major budget crisis.Lee may be seriously considering a run for the mayor's job in a special election expected to occur in April, as the Chronicle reported Monday that she has opened a campaign account. Paperwork was filed with the Secretary of State and with Oakland's Public Ethics Commission, as KTVU explains, which certainly seems like a definitive step."The congresswoman will be making an announcement about her decision later this week," said a spokesperson for Lee, Sean Dugar, in a statement to the media. Following the departure of Oakland City Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas, who served as interim mayor for the last several weeks since Thao's departure, the council on Monday selected Councilmember Kevin Jenkins to serve as interim mayor until the special election occurs.Bas, along with Councilmember Treva Reid, were among the city and community leaders who have lobbied Lee in recent weeks to consider stepping into the role. As a familiar name who has been reelected a dozen times to represent the district that included Oakland in the US House of Representatives, Lee would stand a strong chance of winning a special election."Oakland is a city that is facing a crisis of leadership. Our city needs someone who can restore integrity to the office of the Mayor, unite us in a time of division, and help us address critical issues around the budget, public safety, housing, and inequity in our Town," the group of supporters said in an open letter in mid-December. "We need someone who can bring the new ideas, policies, resources, and opportunities that the people of Oakland deserve. That person is Barbara Lee."As KTVU reports, others who have opened campaign accounts include Councilmember Loren Taylor, who lost to Thao two years ago in tight race; Renia Webb, Thao's former chief of staff who vocally turned on her last summer; as well as lesser-known names Johnny Gatlin, Wendy Adams, Tyron Jordan, Peter Liu, Mindy Pechenuk, Fabian Robinson, Derrick Soo, Elizabeth Swaney, and Larry Lionel Young Jr. A political strategist not involved with the race, Jim Ross, tells the Chronicle of a potential Lee campaign, "She’s the clear frontrunner, but ... She’ll still have to get out and talk to voters and lay out her plans and her vision. But I think anybody currently in the race will have a really hard time getting traction and running against her."Labor groups have a lot at stake in the race, as the Chronicle notes, and they have been pushing for the labor-friendly Lee to step into the race. Should a more moderate candidate end up in the mayor's office, the fear is that the city will push for public-sector union members working for the city to take pay cuts in order to address the budget crisis.Lee, who spent 26 years in Congress, unsuccessfully ran last year in the primary to fill Dianne Feinstein's Senate seat.We will expect to hear from Lee at the end of the week, as her spokesperson said. And after that, there is only another week, until January 17, until the nomination period closes. A special election is expected to then occur on April 15.Photo: Getty Images