Overview
- Multiple outlets report that the California state senator has told allies he will enter the 2026 race, with a formal announcement expected soon.
- Nancy Pelosi has not said whether she will seek another term, and her spokesperson says she is focused on the Nov. 4 Proposition 50 redistricting special election.
- Wiener previously pledged to wait for Pelosi’s plans but has already raised about $1 million through an exploratory committee formed in 2023.
- Chakrabarti, a progressive and former chief of staff to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, has launched his campaign and invested more than $700,000 of his own money.
- California’s top-two primary rules could set up an intraparty showdown, and Wiener’s record on housing policy, LGBTQ+ rights, and budget leadership features prominently; if elected, he would be the first openly gay person to represent San Francisco in Congress.