Club Endorsements: Supervisors of San Francisco Districts 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 & 11
Our membership has voted, and the United Democratic Club is proud to announce sole endorsements of the following candidates for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in the November 2020 election.
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2020. If you are not yet registered to vote in San Francisco, follow this link for instructions on how to register online, identify your polling place, or to vote absentee.
This is the club’s first batch of endorsements for the upcoming November election — we’ll be voting on the remainder of the ballot in August, so stay tuned for more.
About the Board of Supervisors and District Elections
The Board of Supervisors represent San Francisco’s 11 districts in City Hall, and each Supervisor is elected on a non-partisan basis from a district where he or she lives. The Board acts as the legislative body in San Francisco, and the role of a Supervisor is to “respond to the needs of the people of the City and County of San Francisco, establish city policies, and adopt ordinances and resolutions.”
For November 2020, six of the 11 Board of Supervisors seats are up for election in Districts 1, 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11. If you’re not sure what district you’re in, you can check using this SF Planning Department search tool.
Board of Supervisors
District 1 includes the Richmond District, where Marjan was born, co-owns a small business, and raises her three children.
Marjan worked for the late Congressman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor to serve in Congress, and a mentor who instilled a core principle: “the first responsibility of a public servant is to their constituents.” She also served as a Senior Advisor to the California Governor’s Chief of Staff, and most recently as a Senior Advisor to Mayor London Breed, drawing on her experience as a businesses owner and parent to help streamline permitting, advocate for teacher and 100% affordable housing, and appoint diverse perspectives to the City’s boards and commissions.
Marjan is a leader who deeply understands her community and has the experience to deliver results. We strongly endorse Marjan Philhour for District 1 Supervisor. Learn more about Marjan by visiting her website.
District 3 includes San Francisco’s northeastern neighborhoods of Chinatown, Nob Hill, North Beach and Russian Hill.
Danny is a committed neighborhood advocate who serves as the Executive Director of Neighborhood Centers Together, a network of San Francisco community centers; and as President of North Beach Neighbors, which works for a safe, beautiful and livable community for residents and small businesses. Danny is passionate about empowering everyday people to make change in their communities. We strongly endorse Danny Sauter for District 3 Supervisor. Learn more about Danny by visiting his website.
District 5 includes the central neighborhoods of the City, stretching from the Western Addition to the Haight to the Inner Sunset.
Vallie is a longtime community activist and served as District 5 Supervisor after being appointed by Mayor London Breed until December 2019, where she passed 31 pieces of legislation and worked on creating much-needed affordable housing. During her tenure as Supervisor, Vallie and helped to open the city’s first Vehicular Navigation Center, fought to streamline permitting and approvals for merchants, called for hearings on Muni’s chronic operator shortage, and improved bike lanes, among other projects in her district. We strongly endorse Vallie Brown for District 5 Supervisor to continue this work. Learn more about Vallie by visiting her website.
District 7 includes the southwestern communities of the City including Twin Peaks, the Ocean Avenue corridor, and Lake Merced, where Joel has been a community advocate for years.
Joel is an award-winning journalist, former member of the San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee, and the Vice President of Stop Crime SF, which works to hold the criminal justice system accountable while reducing crime in our neighborhoods. He is also a United Democratic Club board member and leads Team Q, the Club’s committee championing LGBTQ issues.
If elected, Joel would be the first openly LGBTQ supervisor for the Westside, and a strong voice for transparency and accountability at City Hall. We strongly endorse him for District 7 Supervisor. Learn more about Joel by visiting his website.
Ahsha is the incumbent Supervisor for District 11, located in the southern part of the City and includes Crocker Amazon, the Excelsior, Ingleside, Ocean View, and Outer Mission.
In his four-year tenure as Supervisor, Ahsha has consistently delivered results for his District. Ahsha led the way in building 600 new housing units, with 64% affordable and 40% set aside for immediate neighbors. He’s rebuilt playgrounds, started a Safe Parking program, secured funding for a brand-new library and opened a job center. We strongly endorse Ahsha Safai for re-election as District 11 Supervisor. Learn more about Ahsha by visiting his website.
District 9 includes the Mission, Bernal Heights, and Portola.
The Club makes no endorsement in District 9 for Supervisor.
Many thanks to all the candidates and to those who submitted questionnaires for review by our voting members. To learn more about our club’s values and endorsements, and to get involved, please visit our website.
