Overview
- Scott Wiener, Connie Chan and Saikat Chakrabarti met for their first major forum at UC Law San Francisco in the race to replace Nancy Pelosi.
- All three backed Medicare for All, support for municipal public power to challenge PG&E and expanding the Supreme Court, along with calls to impeach Justice Clarence Thomas and President Donald Trump.
- In a lightning-round question on whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, Chan and Chakrabarti answered yes while Wiener declined a yes-or-no response, later condemning Israel’s actions and pledging to oppose U.S. funding for the destruction of Palestinian communities.
- Wiener broke with his rivals by criticizing San Francisco’s 2018 Proposition C business tax for homelessness services, which city reports say has raised more than $1.8 billion, while Chan and Chakrabarti voiced support.
- The contest is shaping up as a choice between establishment effectiveness and insurgent change, with a jungle primary on June 2 sending the top two finishers to a Nov. 3 general election.