John H. Reading (November 26, 1917 - February 7, 2003) was Mayor of Oakland, California from 1966 to 1977. Reading was born in Glendale, Arizona. He was instrumental in the building of the Oakland Coliseum and the expansion of the Oakland International Airport. As the United States Republican Party incumbent in 1973, Reading was forced into a run-off election by Bobby Seale, of the Black Panther Party, who won 40 percent of the vote in a losing effort.
