Former Sen. Barbara Boxer Endorses San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan for Congress
Former U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer is endorsing Connie Chan in the race to represent San Francisco in Congress.
The endorsement adds another legendary female politician to Chan’s list of supporters, which also includes House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, whose upcoming retirement has opened one of the most competitive elections for San Francisco’s seat in Congress in decades.
“If ever we needed a fighter and coalition builder who puts working families first, it is now. Connie is that fighter,” Boxer said in a statement. Now retired, Boxer has remained active in politics, including supporting Democratic candidates like Will Rollins, who unsuccessfully ran for Congress in 2024, and former Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf’s brief bid for state treasurer the same year.
The Democrat served as a county supervisor in Marin before going on to represent parts of the San Francisco Bay Area in Congress from 1983 to 1993 — one of only 23 women at the time in the House of Representatives. She then served in the U.S. Senate from 1993 to 2017.
“Although we have made great progress with now 125 women representatives out of 435, there’s still a lot of work to do. Connie will ensure that gap doesn’t grow,” Boxer said. “She will make us proud.”
Chan, a progressive Democrat with wide support from labor organizations, is running against state Sen. Scott Wiener, a former San Francisco supervisor known for his work around housing legislation and LGBTQ rights at the local and state level.
Wiener, a more moderate Democrat, has nabbed support from labor leader Dolores Huerta, the majority of the city’s current Board of Supervisors and other Democratic elected officials, including California Attorney General Rob Bonta, State Treasurer Fiona Ma and Rep. Sam Liccardo, the former San José mayor.
Chan meanwhile has found a powerful ally in Pelosi, who has thrown her fundraising muscle and political expertise behind her campaign. Recently, Pelosi sharply criticized one of Wiener’s campaign moves to create an AI-powered chatbot mimicking Chan.
“Women have spent generations fighting to have our own voices heard in the halls of power,” Pelosi said about the chatbot. “We should not have to now fight against artificial intelligence putting words in our mouths.”
Wiener’s team later took down the AI chatbot, acknowledging that it “clearly missed the mark.”
“My campaign created ConnieChan.ai as a parody to draw attention to my opponent’s record of delay and obstruction around housing, public transit and other critical needs,” Wiener said in a statement following criticism that the tool also mocked Chan’s accent. “Innovation means trying new things, and it also means being honest when something doesn’t land the way you intended.”
On Saturday, the state senator held a “Women for Scott” rally with elected officials including East Bay Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, San Francisco Assemblymember Catherine Stefani and SF Democratic Party Chair Nancy Tung, who have all endorsed Wiener.
Wiener may have more name recognition, from his pro-housing supporters to national Republicans who have attacked his LGBTQ legislation, but recent polling suggests the race is competitive.
Chan said in a statement that she was “deeply grateful” for Boxer’s support.
“Her career has shown what it means to fight for working families and bring local government experience directly to Washington,” Chan said. “I’m honored to follow in Senator Boxer’s footsteps and look forward to carrying that fight to Congress.”