San Francisco District Races

Results are a combination of data provided by the Associated Press (AP) and county election offices. The AP calls winners by analyzing vote tallies and other election data. Check marks are used to denote a winner only when the AP calls a race.

BART Board of Directors, District 7

Top two candidates win seat. Includes votes from San Francisco and Alameda County.

Victor E. Flores57.5%
92,729 votes
Dana Lang42.4%
68,525 votes
Updated at 7:55 PM PT on Dec 3, 2024
San Francisco County

BART Board of Directors, District 9

Top two candidates win seat.

Edward Wright63%
86,966 votes
Joe Sangirardi36.9%
50,905 votes
Updated at 7:55 PM PT on Dec 3, 2024
San Francisco County

Race to Watch

BART Board of Directors, District 7

Top two candidates win seat. Includes votes from San Francisco and Alameda County.

Victor E. Flores57.5%
92,729 votes
Dana Lang42.4%
68,525 votes
Updated at 7:55 PM PT on Dec 3, 2024
San Francisco County

Why does this race matter?

BART is facing its biggest fiscal challenge since opening in 1972. With ridership still less than half of pre-pandemic levels, the agency has lost fare revenue and faces huge deficits starting in 2026. Board members elected this year will play a key role in charting a course through the crisis. BART’s District 7 covers parts of Contra Costa, Alameda and San Francisco counties.

What does the BART board of directors do?

The nine-member board oversees a $2.5 billion annual budget and is responsible for major policy initiatives. One current example: BART has begun replacing the fare gates at all 50 of its stations because of concerns about fare evasion voiced by board members.

Key Candidates

This list represents the most notable candidates running for the seat.
Victor E. Flores Jr.
Victor E. Flores Jr.Environmental Policy Advisor
Dana Lang
Dana LangTransportation Funding Advisor

Key Supporters

This list represents notable organizations and individuals who have taken a position on the ballot measure or candidate, or who are funding campaigns in support or opposition. This list is not exhaustive, and may be updated.

For Flores

  • Rob Bonta, attorney general, California
  • Lateefah Simon, director, BART 
  • Buffy Wicks, state Assembly member
  • Mia Bonta, state Assembly member
  • Marilyn Ezzy Ashcraft, mayor, city of Alameda

For Lang

  • Keith Carson, supervisor, Alameda County 
  • Nate Miley, supervisor, Alameda County 
  • Robert Raburn, director, BART 
  • Elihu Harris, former mayor, Oakland
  • Willie Brown, former mayor, San Francisco
 

Positions on Key Issues
Candidate summaries are based on interviews with the candidates, questionnaires, statements made at debates and public events, and past news coverage.

How has your past education, work and/or lived experience prepared you to join a transit board that administers a $2.5 billion annual budget and makes key decisions for an agency facing an existential crisis?

Flores notes he was born and raised in Oakland. He highlights his work for two city council members, including contact with departments like public works and transportation. "I’ve led land-use policy initiatives, advocated for green spaces and supported Oakland general plan updates," and helped with public engagement for the Oakland-Alameda Adaptation Committee on climate resilience, he says. "I bring the vision, coalition-building skills, and relationships necessary to effectively navigate BART's fiscal challenges and regional coordination.”
Lang says, "I’ve secured hundreds of millions in transportation and security grants serving as the Federal Transit Administration liaison for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, San Francisco Muni security grants coordinator, SF Police grants unit manager and small business affairs officer for SFO.” She notes she earned a BA in economics from Wellesley College and an MBA from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business and currently serves as vice chair of BART’s Police Civilian Review Board.

BART is facing annual operating deficits of at least $350 million starting in less than two years. Those shortfalls could force the agency to make drastic service cuts. What can BART do — apart from any regional tax measure or seeking other outside aid — to address this crisis?

Flores favors pursuing a "rail plus property policy" that he says would capture the value of BART’s real estate and allow the agency to diversify revenue sources. "It also gives BART more funding to build more homes at our stations, creating more riders," he says. He also says BART should create "community hubs" at its stations, turning them into destination points and increasing their use for non-work-related trips.
Lang says, "Bringing riders back to BART is critical” to recoup much-needed fare revenue." With ridership still at less than half of pre-pandemic levels, BART must build rider confidence that its system is safe and reliable, she says. Interagency collaboration could create a more seamless experience and help bring riders back, she notes, adding that BART should consider new funding streams, such as leasing, licensing, and retail and service kiosks.

BART and its customers have suffered through a long series of service disruptions this summer. Is BART service reliable in your view? If not, what would be your highest priority for improvements?

Flores says, "We should always strive for service excellence." He points out that BART is known for service delays related to heat and rain and that climate change means extreme weather impacts will continue to grow. "Working in the climate-resilience space, I prioritize integrating resilience into our improvements and nature-based solutions with multiple co-benefits," he says. "I want to explore building green corridors to reduce the impacts of heat and rain on our system."
Lang says that new trains have generally made BART more reliable, but maintenance needs to be re-established as a top priority given recent equipment failures. "Regularly scheduled preventative maintenance is supposed to prevent what has recurred throughout the summer," she says. "So BART needs to closely examine and modify its maintenance planning at a minimum and/or add resources to preventative maintenance to keep riders safe and to increase confidence in the system."

In response to customer complaints about crime and fare evasion, BART has taken a number of steps it says will improve passenger safety, including increased police patrols and installation of new fare gates. Do these measures go far enough? Too far? What would you do differently?

Flores wants to expand BART's ambassador and crisis intervention programs while also working to fill police vacancies and keep response times under five minutes. "These efforts also need two key components: station activation and alternative accountability pathways," he says. "Station activation through commercial activity, arts, culture and building homes creates community cohesion and safety. Accountability doesn’t have to result in fines and incarceration. We should have diversion programs that allow people to do community service."
Lang says, "Safety is the number one rider concern, so safety measures are a positive step." She calls BART's ambassadors and crisis intervention specialists "great additions" to its safety efforts. Lang adds that it's important to collect data to monitor the effectiveness of the agency's new safety measures. She says BART should produce videos to enhance public awareness of common crimes and to promote safe responses to harassment or physical encounters.

BART's post-pandemic loss of ridership and imminent deficits have focused on the agency's "now" rather than on a vision for the longer-term future. What ideas do you have for improving BART and ensuring it thrives in the coming decades?

Flores says, "My vision for BART is for every rider, especially parents and children, to be confident when riding the system." The system, he says, should be “safe, clean, reliable, and, most importantly, enjoyable,” with each station becoming a vibrant hub of community building that people want to spend time in. “When BART implements my community hub idea and ‘rail-plus-property policy,’ we will unlock new revenue and improve the ridership experience."
Lang says, "My vision for BART is that it can meet ridership needs in ways that are sustainable, holistic, clean, safe and vibrant — and seamlessly link riders to all parts of the service area." The agency, she adds, needs to address its fare structure, mix of income streams and security improvements. "I will use my expertise in transit funding and security to reflect equity, fairness and respect for employees and the public."

Race to Watch

BART Board Director, District 9

Top two candidates win seat.

Edward Wright63%
86,966 votes
Joe Sangirardi36.9%
50,905 votes
Updated at 7:55 PM PT on Dec 3, 2024
San Francisco County

Why does this race matter?

BART is facing its biggest fiscal challenge since opening in 1972. With ridership still less than half of pre-pandemic levels, the agency has lost fare revenue and faces huge deficits starting in 2026. Board members elected this year will play a key role in charting a course through the crisis. BART’s District 9 covers most of San Francisco.

What does the BART board of directors do?

The nine-member board oversees a $2.5 billion annual budget and is responsible for major policy initiatives. One current example: BART has begun replacing the fare gates at all 50 of its stations because of concerns about fare evasion voiced by board members.

Key Candidates

This list represents the most notable candidates running for the seat.
Joe Sangirardi
Joe SangirardiHousing Policy Director
Edward Wright
Edward WrightSenior Transit Advisor

Key Supporters

This list represents notable organizations and individuals who have taken a position on the ballot measure or candidate, or who are funding campaigns in support or opposition. This list is not exhaustive, and may be updated.

For Sangirardi

  • Scott Wiener, state senator 
  • Bevan Dufty, board president, BART
  • Rafael Mandelman, supervisor, San Francisco
  • Matt Dorsey, supervisor, San Francisco
  • Honey Mahogany, former chair, San Francisco Democratic Party

For Wright

  • Nancy Pelosi, U.S. representative
  • Janice Li, director, BART
  • Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club
  • National Union of Healthcare Workers
  • San Francisco Tenants Union
 

Positions on Key Issues
Candidate summaries are based on interviews with the candidates, questionnaires, statements made at debates and public events, and past news coverage.

How has your past education, work and/or lived experience prepared you to join a transit board that administers a $2.5 billion annual budget and makes key decisions for an agency facing an existential crisis?

Sangirardi says, "I'm proud to work in housing and transit policy, and through my job as the lead development professional at California’s leading housing policy advocacy organization, California YIMBY. I have written hundreds of pages on housing and transit policy. I am also an experienced and proven advocate, organizer, and consensus builder and I am prepared and excited to bring my transit and policy experience to the BART board of directors."
Wright says, "I’ve been a BART rider for 14 years and a transit nerd since birth. I’ve written laws for three legislators, overseen budgets to keep projects on track and built consensus to get difficult things done. I currently work on solving the problems transit is facing every single day as a strategic advisor for Muni. I’m the only candidate with experience in public policy, public budgets and public transit."

BART is facing annual operating deficits of at least $350 million starting in less than two years. Those shortfalls could force the agency to make drastic service cuts. What can BART do — apart from any regional tax measure or seeking other outside aid — to address this crisis?

Sangirardi says if voters don't approve a planned tax measure in 2026, the BART board will face choices like increasing fares, implementing severe budget and service cuts or a combination of these options. He says those might address the fiscal cliff crisis from a budget perspective, but would do little to help BART and "will hurt those who most rely on BART, lower-income folks and people of color."
Wright says BART could increase revenue and cut costs through initiatives like an expansion of the region's new BayPass program. He also says BART can renegotiate agreements with San Mateo County to secure more funding for its operations there, renegotiate PG&E’s electrical distribution costs and pursue joint procurement agreements with other agencies to save money. And, he says, the agency "can push for changes to highway funding formulas to unlock more state funding."

BART and its customers have suffered through a long series of service disruptions this summer. Is BART service reliable in your view? If not, what would be your highest priority for improvements?

Sangirardi says, "BART service is getting better but still has a long way to go. I am fighting for BART to be more reliable — it has to be." Service is improving, he says, though it will take a few more years for rebuilding efforts made possible by 2016's Measure RR to be fully realized. "The public's investments are paying off and voters and taxpayers should be proud of their foresight," Sangirardi says.
Wright says, "Keeping BART’s infrastructure in a state of good repair should be prioritized over expanding the system." BART, he adds, should embrace preventative maintenance to fix equipment before it breaks down, and says deferred maintenance projects should focus on improving safety and reliability for the system. When elected, he says, "I’ll fight to ensure Measure RR dollars are spent effectively and that funded maintenance projects are delivered efficiently — on schedule and on budget."

In response to customer complaints about crime and fare evasion, BART has taken a number of steps it says will improve passenger safety, including increased police patrols and installation of new fare gates. Do these measures go far enough? Too far? What would you do differently?

Sangirardi says, “The new full-body faregates are great, and they are already helping at stations where they have been implemented." He adds that BART's Police Department, which is not fully staffed, needs to keep investing in recruiting new officers. Full staffing is needed, he says, "to make BART safer and to give riders and future riders the confidence they need to feel comfortable riding BART."
Wright says he supports BART's new fare gates and the efforts BART has made to modernize its police department; with ambassadors, attendants, and crisis intervention specialists. "These reforms have reduced BART police response times to four minutes or less," he says. "Going forward, we need to continue to invest in public safety and activate stations and plazas with retail and events for a safer, more vibrant environment."

BART's post-pandemic loss of ridership and imminent deficits have tended to focus attention on the agency's "now" rather than on a vision for the longer-term future. What ideas do you have for improving BART and ensuring it thrives in the coming decades?

Sangirardi says BART needs to move from a "commuter rail" model to a "regional rail" model that puts more emphasis on helping people get around the Bay in the evening and on weekends. "BART needs to dramatically increase frequency to make this a reality, and I'm fighting for a BART that will provide the safe, clean, reliable, and frequent service a world class city like San Francisco and a region like the Bay Area deserve," he says.
Wright says, "I’m not just fighting for the system we have, I’m running to create the system we deserve, with higher frequencies, more amenities, and more connections to core urban destinations." That includes completing BART's extension through downtown San José to connect the region's largest cities and economies. And the agency, he argues, should also seriously consider building new infill stations on existing lines to increase transit access and ridership at a reduced cost.

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