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"title": "Scott Wiener Leads in San Francisco Congressional Race to Succeed Nancy Pelosi",
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"content": "\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">State Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/scott-wiener\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a> was ahead of San Francisco Supervisor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/connie-chan\">Connie Chan\u003c/a> by a significant margin on Tuesday night in the race to represent the city in Congress, a seat held by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/podcasts/thespeaker\">Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a> for nearly 40 years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“Tonight San Francisco voted for results,” Wiener said at a crowded election night party to boisterous cheers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Acknowledging Pelosi’s trailblazing tenure, he called the longtime San Francisco representative “the greatest speaker in modern American history.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener also called the night “a milestone for my journey” and recalled arriving in the city as a “nerdy” young gay man. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12108193\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An election night party for State Sen. Scott Wiener at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on Nov.3, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That young man, he said, “saw people like him everywhere and he knew he was home…I have dedicated my life to this city and to this community.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener held a steady lead in the polls throughout the race, even after big boosts for Chan along the campaign trail, including an endorsement from Pelosi, who is retiring. It’s a historic turn for an election that will have lasting repercussions, as the city and nation grapple with issues like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12104381/san-francisco-is-ground-zero-for-ai-how-would-congressional-candidates-push-for-regulation\">artificial intelligence\u003c/a>, affordability and war overseas. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“What’s going through my mind is incredible gratitude to San Franciscans for trusting me to represent them at a moment in time that’s frankly dangerous and monumental,” he told KQED Tuesday night amid a deluge of Democratic victories across the U.S. “We’re going to make change. With this tidal wave across the country, we’re going to be able to make change.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan said late Tuesday that the race was still too early to call and vowed to let the process unfold. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“We are proud and we have every reason to keep our heads high,” she said. “Look at what you made possible. Working people came together, took on extraordinary spending, and made their voices heard. And across the country, we saw what happens when working people stand up and fight back.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener would become the first openly gay man to represent San Francisco in Congress.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener was born in New Jersey and moved to San Francisco after attending Harvard Law School. He started his political journey at the local level, serving as a San Francisco supervisor before moving to the state Senate, where he built a reputation as a bulldog for passing legislation to spur more housing development and supporting LGBTQ+ rights. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Leslie Katz, a former Democratic Party chair in San Francisco, celebrated his showing Tuesday night. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“It’s really a treat to see somebody with his values and work ethic and drive and just good politics be able to be in this position,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102627\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, right, during her debate with State Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener’s outspoken comments against President Donald Trump have made him the target of MAGA Republicans. But the state senator has also made enemies in Democratic circles, particularly those on the left who have criticized his approach to housing policy as deregulation that has primarily benefitted real estate interests and private developers as the city’s housing costs have skyrocketed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His position on Israel also became a lightning rod in the race, starting back before the June primary during a live debate when Wiener failed to answer a “yes” or “no” question about whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener’s opponents at the time, including Chan, both said “yes,” but Wiener didn’t respond. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He later \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069409/scott-wiener-pivots-after-congressional-forum-israel-has-committed-genocide-in-gaza\">publicly changed his position\u003c/a> and said he does believe that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Wiener, who is Jewish, had publicly criticized Israel before and has continued to maintain that the U.S. should reevaluate its relationship with Israel and its leader Benjamin Netanyahu. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While he said he supports cutting off the sending of offensive weapons to Israel, Wiener said he still supports helping Israel defend itself and supports defensive weapons like the Iron Dome and David’s Sling. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"2000\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12108169\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd.jpg 1500w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd-1152x1536.jpg 1152w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie Shake hands at Wiener’s election night party at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2026. (Sydney Johnson/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Tuesday, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said, “I look forward to partnering with him,” adding that he also looked forward to working with Chan in San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan, who was born in Hong Kong but moved to San Francisco’s Chinatown as a young person, carved her lane in the race as a working mom who sought to represent tenants, small businesses and working families, while touting her experience as budget chair for the Board of Supervisors. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But her campaign struggled to match the funding that Wiener’s campaign amassed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084132/nancy-pelosi-endorses-san-francisco-supervisor-connie-chan-for-congress\">most powerful endorsement\u003c/a> came from a moderate, Pelosi herself, and she dominated the city’s progressive camps and labor unions, along with some quieter communities, as well, like conservative Chinese neighborhoods on the Westside, which she has shown support for on hyper-local issues like reopening the Great Highway. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Early on, Chan staked out a position critical of Israel, saying it was committing genocide in Gaza and later clarifying that she supports a full arms embargo on the country. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Tuesday, her supporters said they were disappointed in the prospect of Wiener heading to Congress. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“I don’t think Scott Wiener’s done anything for the city, really,” said Tom Ladd.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Artificial intelligence also became one of the defining issues of the race, as protests over data centers and doomsday warnings from AI company CEOs made national headlines this year.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener passed the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12020857/california-lawmaker-ready-revive-fight-regulating-ai\">first AI transparency bill\u003c/a>, which other states have since adapted. In debates, mailers and campaign videos, Wiener told voters he would seek to ramp up AI regulation at the national level, including pushing for a “kill switch” in case of a catastrophic scenario. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069060\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, a candidate for California’s 11th Congressional District, participates in a forum with other candidates at UC Law San Francisco on Jan. 7, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan criticized Wiener’s track record on AI regulation, calling the bill he authored “watered down” and influenced by companies in the industry. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener’s campaign received $3 million from a PAC that Anthropic funded, and a handful of other tech moguls also donated to his campaign. In her messages to voters, Chan said that someone who is “bankrolled” by billionaires and AI leaders themselves could not be trusted to regulate such a powerful industry.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AI got personal in the race, too. Wiener’s team released an AI chatbot mimicking Chan earlier this year, attempting to poke fun at the supervisor’s record on housing and transit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the campaign stunt flopped, with Chan calling it mockery and her supporters, including Pelosi, saying the move was racist and sexist. Wiener apologized, and his team took the website down.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“This was a competitive, intense race. And you know what? It should be,” Wiener said, adding that while he has had his disagreements with Chan, “I respect her in terms of her commitment to San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>State Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/scott-wiener\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a> was ahead of San Francisco Supervisor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/connie-chan\">Connie Chan\u003c/a> by a significant margin on Tuesday night in the race to represent the city in Congress, a seat held by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/podcasts/thespeaker\">Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a> for nearly 40 years. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Tonight San Francisco voted for results,” Wiener said at a crowded election night party to boisterous cheers. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Acknowledging Pelosi’s trailblazing tenure, he called the longtime San Francisco representative “the greatest speaker in modern American history.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener also called the night “a milestone for my journey” and recalled arriving in the city as a “nerdy” young gay man. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12108193\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An election night party for State Sen. Scott Wiener at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on Nov.3, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12108193\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An election night party for State Sen. Scott Wiener at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on Nov.3, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>That young man, he said, “saw people like him everywhere and he knew he was home…I have dedicated my life to this city and to this community.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener held a steady lead in the polls throughout the race, even after big boosts for Chan along the campaign trail, including an endorsement from Pelosi, who is retiring. It’s a historic turn for an election that will have lasting repercussions, as the city and nation grapple with issues like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12104381/san-francisco-is-ground-zero-for-ai-how-would-congressional-candidates-push-for-regulation\">artificial intelligence\u003c/a>, affordability and war overseas. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Wiener held a steady lead in the polls throughout the race, even after big boosts for Chan along the campaign trail, including an endorsement from Pelosi, who is retiring. It’s a historic turn for an election that will have lasting repercussions, as the city and nation grapple with issues like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12104381/san-francisco-is-ground-zero-for-ai-how-would-congressional-candidates-push-for-regulation\">artificial intelligence\u003c/a>, affordability and war overseas. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“What’s going through my mind is incredible gratitude to San Franciscans for trusting me to represent them at a moment in time that’s frankly dangerous and monumental,” he told KQED Tuesday night amid a deluge of Democratic victories across the U.S. “We’re going to make change. With this tidal wave across the country, we’re going to be able to make change.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“What’s going through my mind is incredible gratitude to San Franciscans for trusting me to represent them at a moment in time that’s frankly dangerous and monumental,” he told KQED Tuesday night amid a deluge of Democratic victories across the U.S. “We’re going to make change. With this tidal wave across the country, we’re going to be able to make change.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan said late Tuesday that the race was still too early to call and vowed to let the process unfold. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We are proud and we have every reason to keep our heads high,” she said. “Look at what you made possible. Working people came together, took on extraordinary spending, and made their voices heard. And across the country, we saw what happens when working people stand up and fight back.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“We are proud and we have every reason to keep our heads high,” she said. “Look at what you made possible. Working people came together, took on extraordinary spending, and made their voices heard. And across the country, we saw what happens when working people stand up and fight back.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener would become the first openly gay man to represent San Francisco in Congress.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Wiener would become the first openly gay man to represent San Francisco in Congress.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener was born in New Jersey and moved to San Francisco after attending Harvard Law School. He started his political journey at the local level, serving as a San Francisco supervisor before moving to the state Senate, where he built a reputation as a bulldog for passing legislation to spur more housing development and supporting LGBTQ+ rights. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Wiener was born in New Jersey and moved to San Francisco after attending Harvard Law School. He started his political journey at the local level, serving as a San Francisco supervisor before moving to the state Senate, where he built a reputation as a bulldog for passing legislation to spur more housing development and supporting LGBTQ+ rights. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Leslie Katz, a former Democratic Party chair in San Francisco, celebrated his showing Tuesday night. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Leslie Katz, a former Democratic Party chair in San Francisco, celebrated his showing Tuesday night. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It’s really a treat to see somebody with his values and work ethic and drive and just good politics be able to be in this position,” she said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“It’s really a treat to see somebody with his values and work ethic and drive and just good politics be able to be in this position,” she said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102627\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, right, during her debate with State Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102627\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, right, during her debate with State Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. \u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener’s outspoken comments against President Donald Trump have made him the target of MAGA Republicans. But the state senator has also made enemies in Democratic circles, particularly those on the left who have criticized his approach to housing policy as deregulation that has primarily benefitted real estate interests and private developers as the city’s housing costs have skyrocketed. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Wiener’s outspoken comments against President Donald Trump have made him the target of MAGA Republicans. But the state senator has also made enemies in Democratic circles, particularly those on the left who have criticized his approach to housing policy as deregulation that has primarily benefitted real estate interests and private developers as the city’s housing costs have skyrocketed. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>His position on Israel also became a lightning rod in the race, starting back before the June primary during a live debate when Wiener failed to answer a “yes” or “no” question about whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>His position on Israel also became a lightning rod in the race, starting back before the June primary during a live debate when Wiener failed to answer a “yes” or “no” question about whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener’s opponents at the time, including Chan, both said “yes,” but Wiener didn’t respond. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He later \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069409/scott-wiener-pivots-after-congressional-forum-israel-has-committed-genocide-in-gaza\">publicly changed his position\u003c/a> and said he does believe that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Wiener, who is Jewish, had publicly criticized Israel before and has continued to maintain that the U.S. should reevaluate its relationship with Israel and its leader Benjamin Netanyahu. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He later \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069409/scott-wiener-pivots-after-congressional-forum-israel-has-committed-genocide-in-gaza\">publicly changed his position\u003c/a> and said he does believe that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Wiener, who is Jewish, had publicly criticized Israel before and has continued to maintain that the U.S. should reevaluate its relationship with Israel and its leader Benjamin Netanyahu. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While he said he supports cutting off the sending of offensive weapons to Israel, Wiener said he still supports helping Israel defend itself and supports defensive weapons like the Iron Dome and David’s Sling. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>While he said he supports cutting off the sending of offensive weapons to Israel, Wiener said he still supports helping Israel defend itself and supports defensive weapons like the Iron Dome and David’s Sling. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12108169\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd.jpg 1500w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd-1152x1536.jpg 1152w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie Shake hands at Wiener’s election night party at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Sydney Johnson/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said, “I look forward to partnering with him,” adding that he also looked forward to working with Chan in San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan, who was born in Hong Kong but moved to San Francisco’s Chinatown as a young person, carved her lane in the race as a working mom who sought to represent tenants, small businesses and working families, while touting her experience as budget chair for the Board of Supervisors. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Chan, who was born in Hong Kong but moved to San Francisco’s Chinatown as a young person, carved her lane in the race as a working mom who sought to represent tenants, small businesses and working families, while touting her experience as budget chair for the Board of Supervisors. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But her campaign struggled to match the funding that Wiener’s campaign amassed. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084132/nancy-pelosi-endorses-san-francisco-supervisor-connie-chan-for-congress\">most powerful endorsement\u003c/a> came from a moderate, Pelosi herself, and she dominated the city’s progressive camps and labor unions, along with some quieter communities, as well, like conservative Chinese neighborhoods on the Westside, which she has shown support for on hyper-local issues like reopening the Great Highway. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Early on, Chan staked out a position critical of Israel, saying it was committing genocide in Gaza and later clarifying that she supports a full arms embargo on the country. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>On Tuesday, her supporters said they were disappointed in the prospect of Wiener heading to Congress. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I don’t think Scott Wiener’s done anything for the city, really,” said Tom Ladd.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Artificial intelligence also became one of the defining issues of the race, as protests over data centers and doomsday warnings from AI company CEOs made national headlines this year.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener passed the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12020857/california-lawmaker-ready-revive-fight-regulating-ai\">first AI transparency bill\u003c/a>, which other states have since adapted. In debates, mailers and campaign videos, Wiener told voters he would seek to ramp up AI regulation at the national level, including pushing for a “kill switch” in case of a catastrophic scenario. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan criticized Wiener’s track record on AI regulation, calling the bill he authored “watered down” and influenced by companies in the industry. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener’s campaign received $3 million from a PAC that Anthropic funded, and a handful of other tech moguls also donated to his campaign. In her messages to voters, Chan said that someone who is “bankrolled” by billionaires and AI leaders themselves could not be trusted to regulate such a powerful industry.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>AI got personal in the race, too. Wiener’s team released an AI chatbot mimicking Chan earlier this year, attempting to poke fun at the supervisor’s record on housing and transit. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>AI got personal in the race, too. Wiener’s team released an AI chatbot mimicking Chan earlier this year, attempting to poke fun at the supervisor’s record on housing and transit. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But the campaign stunt flopped, with Chan calling it mockery and her supporters, including Pelosi, saying the move was racist and sexist. Wiener apologized, and his team took the website down.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“This was a competitive, intense race. And you know what? It should be,” Wiener said, adding that while he has had his disagreements with Chan, “I respect her in terms of her commitment to San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“This was a competitive, intense race. And you know what? It should be,” Wiener said, adding that while he has had his disagreements with Chan, “I respect her in terms of her commitment to San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"excerpt": "This election marks the first time in nearly four decades that there has been an open seat to represent San Francisco in the U.S. House of Representatives.",
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"title": "Scott Wiener Leads in San Francisco Congressional Race to Succeed Nancy Pelosi | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">State Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/scott-wiener\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a> was ahead of San Francisco Supervisor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/connie-chan\">Connie Chan\u003c/a> by a significant margin on Tuesday night in the race to represent the city in Congress, a seat held by \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/podcasts/thespeaker\">Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a> for nearly 40 years. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“Tonight San Francisco voted for results,” Wiener said at a crowded election night party to boisterous cheers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Acknowledging Pelosi’s trailblazing tenure, he called the longtime San Francisco representative “the greatest speaker in modern American history.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener also called the night “a milestone for my journey” and recalled arriving in the city as a “nerdy” young gay man. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1999\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12108193\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5.jpg 1999w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-ElectionNight-07-BL_qed-90616be5-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1999px) 100vw, 1999px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An election night party for State Sen. Scott Wiener at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on Nov.3, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That young man, he said, “saw people like him everywhere and he knew he was home…I have dedicated my life to this city and to this community.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener held a steady lead in the polls throughout the race, even after big boosts for Chan along the campaign trail, including an endorsement from Pelosi, who is retiring. It’s a historic turn for an election that will have lasting repercussions, as the city and nation grapple with issues like \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12104381/san-francisco-is-ground-zero-for-ai-how-would-congressional-candidates-push-for-regulation\">artificial intelligence\u003c/a>, affordability and war overseas. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“What’s going through my mind is incredible gratitude to San Franciscans for trusting me to represent them at a moment in time that’s frankly dangerous and monumental,” he told KQED Tuesday night amid a deluge of Democratic victories across the U.S. “We’re going to make change. With this tidal wave across the country, we’re going to be able to make change.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan said late Tuesday that the race was still too early to call and vowed to let the process unfold. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“We are proud and we have every reason to keep our heads high,” she said. “Look at what you made possible. Working people came together, took on extraordinary spending, and made their voices heard. And across the country, we saw what happens when working people stand up and fight back.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener would become the first openly gay man to represent San Francisco in Congress.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener was born in New Jersey and moved to San Francisco after attending Harvard Law School. He started his political journey at the local level, serving as a San Francisco supervisor before moving to the state Senate, where he built a reputation as a bulldog for passing legislation to spur more housing development and supporting LGBTQ+ rights. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Leslie Katz, a former Democratic Party chair in San Francisco, celebrated his showing Tuesday night. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“It’s really a treat to see somebody with his values and work ethic and drive and just good politics be able to be in this position,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102627\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/GettyImages-2297609803-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, right, during her debate with State Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. (Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener’s outspoken comments against President Donald Trump have made him the target of MAGA Republicans. But the state senator has also made enemies in Democratic circles, particularly those on the left who have criticized his approach to housing policy as deregulation that has primarily benefitted real estate interests and private developers as the city’s housing costs have skyrocketed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His position on Israel also became a lightning rod in the race, starting back before the June primary during a live debate when Wiener failed to answer a “yes” or “no” question about whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener’s opponents at the time, including Chan, both said “yes,” but Wiener didn’t respond. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He later \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12069409/scott-wiener-pivots-after-congressional-forum-israel-has-committed-genocide-in-gaza\">publicly changed his position\u003c/a> and said he does believe that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Wiener, who is Jewish, had publicly criticized Israel before and has continued to maintain that the U.S. should reevaluate its relationship with Israel and its leader Benjamin Netanyahu. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While he said he supports cutting off the sending of offensive weapons to Israel, Wiener said he still supports helping Israel defend itself and supports defensive weapons like the Iron Dome and David’s Sling. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1500\" height=\"2000\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12108169\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd.jpg 1500w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/11/261103-Wiener-Lurie-SJ-01-KQED-f1b9f3fd-1152x1536.jpg 1152w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie Shake hands at Wiener’s election night party at the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on Nov. 3, 2026. (Sydney Johnson/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Tuesday, San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie said, “I look forward to partnering with him,” adding that he also looked forward to working with Chan in San Francisco.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan, who was born in Hong Kong but moved to San Francisco’s Chinatown as a young person, carved her lane in the race as a working mom who sought to represent tenants, small businesses and working families, while touting her experience as budget chair for the Board of Supervisors. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But her campaign struggled to match the funding that Wiener’s campaign amassed. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084132/nancy-pelosi-endorses-san-francisco-supervisor-connie-chan-for-congress\">most powerful endorsement\u003c/a> came from a moderate, Pelosi herself, and she dominated the city’s progressive camps and labor unions, along with some quieter communities, as well, like conservative Chinese neighborhoods on the Westside, which she has shown support for on hyper-local issues like reopening the Great Highway. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Early on, Chan staked out a position critical of Israel, saying it was committing genocide in Gaza and later clarifying that she supports a full arms embargo on the country. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Tuesday, her supporters said they were disappointed in the prospect of Wiener heading to Congress. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“I don’t think Scott Wiener’s done anything for the city, really,” said Tom Ladd.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Artificial intelligence also became one of the defining issues of the race, as protests over data centers and doomsday warnings from AI company CEOs made national headlines this year.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener passed the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12020857/california-lawmaker-ready-revive-fight-regulating-ai\">first AI transparency bill\u003c/a>, which other states have since adapted. In debates, mailers and campaign videos, Wiener told voters he would seek to ramp up AI regulation at the national level, including pushing for a “kill switch” in case of a catastrophic scenario. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069060\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/01/260107-SFCongressionalCandidateForum-10-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, a candidate for California’s 11th Congressional District, participates in a forum with other candidates at UC Law San Francisco on Jan. 7, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chan criticized Wiener’s track record on AI regulation, calling the bill he authored “watered down” and influenced by companies in the industry. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener’s campaign received $3 million from a PAC that Anthropic funded, and a handful of other tech moguls also donated to his campaign. In her messages to voters, Chan said that someone who is “bankrolled” by billionaires and AI leaders themselves could not be trusted to regulate such a powerful industry.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AI got personal in the race, too. Wiener’s team released an AI chatbot mimicking Chan earlier this year, attempting to poke fun at the supervisor’s record on housing and transit. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the campaign stunt flopped, with Chan calling it mockery and her supporters, including Pelosi, saying the move was racist and sexist. Wiener apologized, and his team took the website down.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“This was a competitive, intense race. And you know what? It should be,” Wiener said, adding that while he has had his disagreements with Chan, “I respect her in terms of her commitment to San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "will-democrats-control-congress-their-path-runs-through-california-watch-these-races",
"title": "Will Democrats Control Congress? Their Path Runs Through California. Watch These Races",
"publishDate": 1793746800,
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"headTitle": "Will Democrats Control Congress? Their Path Runs Through California. Watch These Races | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California \u003c/a>voters will play a key role in determining which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives, and by how much, as voting for the 2026 midterm election concludes Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Democrats are poised to flip at least three seats currently held by California Republicans after voters \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062781/proposition-50-passes-in-california-boosting-democrats-in-fight-for-us-house-control\">approved Proposition 50 last year\u003c/a>, which redrew five of California’s districts to favor Democrats as a countermeasure to pro-Republican gerrymandering in Texas. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The remaining two redrawn districts — one in the Central Valley and the other in San Diego and Riverside counties — are more competitive, even though Democrats outnumber Republicans in voter registration.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A sign says 'Vote Here!' with an arrow pointing to a polling place.\" class=\"wp-image-12011911\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign reads, ‘Vote Here!’ outside of San Francisco City Hall on Oct. 28, 2024. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A handful of races feature progressive challengers seeking to oust longtime incumbents who could push the party to the left if they are successful. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Several California congressional races are expected to be close, as counties tabulate ballots received up to seven days after Election Day. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here’s what CalMatters is watching:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Central Valley, San Diego area seats pivotal\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12107318/central-valley-farmers-face-rising-costs-is-it-enough-to-flip-a-house-seat\">most hotly contested race\u003c/a> features 12-year Republican incumbent Rep. David Valadao of Hanford, a dairy farmer and perpetual target for national Democrats, and political newcomer Randy Villegas, a political science professor. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Democrats hope Villegas, who is endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, can defy conventional political wisdom and win in the historically conservative, agriculture-heavy Central Valley. Villegas supports Medicare for All and universal child care, although he has also called to suspend federal taxes on gas and diesel.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Valadao, the lone remaining Republican who voted to impeach President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021 riots, is seeking his seventh term. He touts the importance of bipartisanship and independent thinking, but has faced tough questioning over his decision to support Trump’s megabill that will ultimately \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2026/08/medi-cal-the-cut-healthcare-threatened/\">strip health care coverage\u003c/a> from more than 2 million Californians in the next four years.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg\" alt=\"Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California's Central Valley.\" class=\"wp-image-12106862\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California’s Central Valley. (Mario Tama/Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Further south in San Diego and Riverside counties, two local elected officials — Marni von Wilpert, a Democratic San Diego City Council, and Republican San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond — are competing to fill the seat of Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, who chose to retire rather than seek reelection in a redrawn district. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Von Wilpert and Desmond are running traditionally centrist campaigns that harken to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congress-48-wonwilpert-desmond/\">pre-Trump politics\u003c/a>. Von Wilpert has eschewed the insurgent progressive left and instead campaigned with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Desmond has worked overtime to distance himself from Trump and the president’s MAGA rhetoric, despite receiving Trump’s endorsement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Public polls \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/california-us-house-48-polls-2026.html\">have consistently shown\u003c/a> von Wilpert with a slight lead over Desmond, and the nonpartisan Cook Political Report switched the race from “tossup” to “lean Democrat” back in March. Internal campaign polling suggests the race is close.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Progressives try to remake Democratic Party\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Several California races feature two Democrats because of the state’s top-two primary election system. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among the most-watched is the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congressional-district-11-wiener-chan-debate/\">race to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a>, who has endorsed Connie Chan, a San Francisco supervisor. Chan, a Chinese immigrant from Taiwan, is known for \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/08/wiener-chan-san-francisco-congress-pelosi/\">opposing urban development\u003c/a> that could displace tenants or disrupt a neighborhood’s character. She faces state Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/scott-wiener-100936\">Scott Wiener,\u003c/a> a prolific legislator who has authored several laws to expedite housing production and secure competitive wages on state-subsidized projects. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the Sacramento area, an \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/california-congress-7th-district-race/\">intergenerational “battle of the ages”\u003c/a> is underway between Rep. Doris Matsui, 82, and Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, 41. Matsui has a massive financial advantage and has loaned her campaign $4 million since the primary. Vang has political momentum as a young, insurgent progressive who is media savvy and able to directly engage with supporters via TikTok and Instagram.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And in Los Angeles, incumbent Rep. Jimmy Gomez faces a challenge from Democratic Socialist Angela Gonzales-Torres. The five-term congressmember won the June primary by double digits but has bled support amid a House ethics investigation into allegations of sexual assault, which he’s denied. A \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/newsletters/california-playbook/2026/10/27/poll-jimmy-gomez-tough-race-01135850\">recent poll\u003c/a> showed Gonzales-Torres leading 51% to Gomez’s 45%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Upsets in Prop. 50 districts could endanger majority\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Three incumbent Republican or former Republican lawmakers are expected to lose their jobs in the wake of Prop. 50.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Either Rep. Young Kim or Rep. Ken Calvert, who are both competing for California’s 40th District, will be left jobless. Gerrymandering drastically reshaped Calvert’s 41st District, but rather than retire, he chose to challenge his colleague Kim. Both scrambled to “out-Trump” the other in the primary election but Kim has since returned to a more centrist, fiscally conservative approach.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep. James Gallagher, who succeeded the late Rep. Doug LaMalfa in representing the rural north state in the 1st Congressional District, is poised to lose to former Senate President ProTem \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/mike-mcguire-93\">Mike McGuire\u003c/a>, a Democrat. The district was redrawn to remove several conservative and rural areas near the Oregon-California border. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep. Kevin Kiley, who left the Republican Party earlier this year, is seeking reelection in the 6th Congressional District rather than his former 3rd District, which was significantly reshaped to favor Democrats. He faces Dr. Richard Pan, a physician and former state senator running as an anti-Make America Healthy Again candidate. Kiley hopes to pull votes from Republicans, independents and moderate Democrats.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/11/california-election-2026-congress/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California \u003c/a>voters will play a key role in determining which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives, and by how much, as voting for the 2026 midterm election concludes Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California \u003c/a>voters will play a key role in determining which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives, and by how much, as voting for the 2026 midterm election concludes Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Democrats are poised to flip at least three seats currently held by California Republicans after voters \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062781/proposition-50-passes-in-california-boosting-democrats-in-fight-for-us-house-control\">approved Proposition 50 last year\u003c/a>, which redrew five of California’s districts to favor Democrats as a countermeasure to pro-Republican gerrymandering in Texas. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>Democrats are poised to flip at least three seats currently held by California Republicans after voters \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062781/proposition-50-passes-in-california-boosting-democrats-in-fight-for-us-house-control\">approved Proposition 50 last year\u003c/a>, which redrew five of California’s districts to favor Democrats as a countermeasure to pro-Republican gerrymandering in Texas. \u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The remaining two redrawn districts — one in the Central Valley and the other in San Diego and Riverside counties — are more competitive, even though Democrats outnumber Republicans in voter registration.\u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>The remaining two redrawn districts — one in the Central Valley and the other in San Diego and Riverside counties — are more competitive, even though Democrats outnumber Republicans in voter registration.\u003c/p>\n"
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"alt": "A sign says 'Vote Here!' with an arrow pointing to a polling place.",
"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A sign says 'Vote Here!' with an arrow pointing to a polling place.\" class=\"wp-image-12011911\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign reads, ‘Vote Here!’ outside of San Francisco City Hall on Oct. 28, 2024.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A sign says 'Vote Here!' with an arrow pointing to a polling place.\" class=\"wp-image-12011911\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign reads, ‘Vote Here!’ outside of San Francisco City Hall on Oct. 28, 2024.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>A handful of races feature progressive challengers seeking to oust longtime incumbents who could push the party to the left if they are successful. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>A handful of races feature progressive challengers seeking to oust longtime incumbents who could push the party to the left if they are successful. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Several California congressional races are expected to be close, as counties tabulate ballots received up to seven days after Election Day. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Several California congressional races are expected to be close, as counties tabulate ballots received up to seven days after Election Day. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Here’s what CalMatters is watching:\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Here’s what CalMatters is watching:\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
"text": "Central Valley, San Diego area seats pivotal",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Central Valley, San Diego area seats pivotal\u003c/h2>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Central Valley, San Diego area seats pivotal\u003c/h2>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12107318/central-valley-farmers-face-rising-costs-is-it-enough-to-flip-a-house-seat\">most hotly contested race\u003c/a> features 12-year Republican incumbent Rep. David Valadao of Hanford, a dairy farmer and perpetual target for national Democrats, and political newcomer Randy Villegas, a political science professor. \u003c/p>\n",
"innerContent": [
"\n\u003cp>California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12107318/central-valley-farmers-face-rising-costs-is-it-enough-to-flip-a-house-seat\">most hotly contested race\u003c/a> features 12-year Republican incumbent Rep. David Valadao of Hanford, a dairy farmer and perpetual target for national Democrats, and political newcomer Randy Villegas, a political science professor. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Democrats hope Villegas, who is endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, can defy conventional political wisdom and win in the historically conservative, agriculture-heavy Central Valley. Villegas supports Medicare for All and universal child care, although he has also called to suspend federal taxes on gas and diesel.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Democrats hope Villegas, who is endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, can defy conventional political wisdom and win in the historically conservative, agriculture-heavy Central Valley. Villegas supports Medicare for All and universal child care, although he has also called to suspend federal taxes on gas and diesel.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Valadao, the lone remaining Republican who voted to impeach President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021 riots, is seeking his seventh term. He touts the importance of bipartisanship and independent thinking, but has faced tough questioning over his decision to support Trump’s megabill that will ultimately \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2026/08/medi-cal-the-cut-healthcare-threatened/\">strip health care coverage\u003c/a> from more than 2 million Californians in the next four years.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Valadao, the lone remaining Republican who voted to impeach President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021 riots, is seeking his seventh term. He touts the importance of bipartisanship and independent thinking, but has faced tough questioning over his decision to support Trump’s megabill that will ultimately \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2026/08/medi-cal-the-cut-healthcare-threatened/\">strip health care coverage\u003c/a> from more than 2 million Californians in the next four years.\u003c/p>\n"
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"alt": "Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California's Central Valley.",
"srcset": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg\" alt=\"Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California's Central Valley.\" class=\"wp-image-12106862\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California’s Central Valley.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Mario Tama/Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg\" alt=\"Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California's Central Valley.\" class=\"wp-image-12106862\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California’s Central Valley.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Mario Tama/Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Further south in San Diego and Riverside counties, two local elected officials — Marni von Wilpert, a Democratic San Diego City Council, and Republican San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond — are competing to fill the seat of Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, who chose to retire rather than seek reelection in a redrawn district. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Further south in San Diego and Riverside counties, two local elected officials — Marni von Wilpert, a Democratic San Diego City Council, and Republican San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond — are competing to fill the seat of Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, who chose to retire rather than seek reelection in a redrawn district. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Von Wilpert and Desmond are running traditionally centrist campaigns that harken to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congress-48-wonwilpert-desmond/\">pre-Trump politics\u003c/a>. Von Wilpert has eschewed the insurgent progressive left and instead campaigned with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Desmond has worked overtime to distance himself from Trump and the president’s MAGA rhetoric, despite receiving Trump’s endorsement. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Von Wilpert and Desmond are running traditionally centrist campaigns that harken to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congress-48-wonwilpert-desmond/\">pre-Trump politics\u003c/a>. Von Wilpert has eschewed the insurgent progressive left and instead campaigned with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Desmond has worked overtime to distance himself from Trump and the president’s MAGA rhetoric, despite receiving Trump’s endorsement. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Public polls \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/california-us-house-48-polls-2026.html\">have consistently shown\u003c/a> von Wilpert with a slight lead over Desmond, and the nonpartisan Cook Political Report switched the race from “tossup” to “lean Democrat” back in March. Internal campaign polling suggests the race is close.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Public polls \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/california-us-house-48-polls-2026.html\">have consistently shown\u003c/a> von Wilpert with a slight lead over Desmond, and the nonpartisan Cook Political Report switched the race from “tossup” to “lean Democrat” back in March. Internal campaign polling suggests the race is close.\u003c/p>\n"
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"text": "Progressives try to remake Democratic Party",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Progressives try to remake Democratic Party\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Several California races feature two Democrats because of the state’s top-two primary election system. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Several California races feature two Democrats because of the state’s top-two primary election system. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Among the most-watched is the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congressional-district-11-wiener-chan-debate/\">race to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a>, who has endorsed Connie Chan, a San Francisco supervisor. Chan, a Chinese immigrant from Taiwan, is known for \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/08/wiener-chan-san-francisco-congress-pelosi/\">opposing urban development\u003c/a> that could displace tenants or disrupt a neighborhood’s character. She faces state Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/scott-wiener-100936\">Scott Wiener,\u003c/a> a prolific legislator who has authored several laws to expedite housing production and secure competitive wages on state-subsidized projects. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Among the most-watched is the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congressional-district-11-wiener-chan-debate/\">race to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a>, who has endorsed Connie Chan, a San Francisco supervisor. Chan, a Chinese immigrant from Taiwan, is known for \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/08/wiener-chan-san-francisco-congress-pelosi/\">opposing urban development\u003c/a> that could displace tenants or disrupt a neighborhood’s character. She faces state Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/scott-wiener-100936\">Scott Wiener,\u003c/a> a prolific legislator who has authored several laws to expedite housing production and secure competitive wages on state-subsidized projects. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In the Sacramento area, an \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/california-congress-7th-district-race/\">intergenerational “battle of the ages”\u003c/a> is underway between Rep. Doris Matsui, 82, and Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, 41. Matsui has a massive financial advantage and has loaned her campaign $4 million since the primary. Vang has political momentum as a young, insurgent progressive who is media savvy and able to directly engage with supporters via TikTok and Instagram.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In the Sacramento area, an \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/california-congress-7th-district-race/\">intergenerational “battle of the ages”\u003c/a> is underway between Rep. Doris Matsui, 82, and Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, 41. Matsui has a massive financial advantage and has loaned her campaign $4 million since the primary. Vang has political momentum as a young, insurgent progressive who is media savvy and able to directly engage with supporters via TikTok and Instagram.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>And in Los Angeles, incumbent Rep. Jimmy Gomez faces a challenge from Democratic Socialist Angela Gonzales-Torres. The five-term congressmember won the June primary by double digits but has bled support amid a House ethics investigation into allegations of sexual assault, which he’s denied. A \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/newsletters/california-playbook/2026/10/27/poll-jimmy-gomez-tough-race-01135850\">recent poll\u003c/a> showed Gonzales-Torres leading 51% to Gomez’s 45%.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>And in Los Angeles, incumbent Rep. Jimmy Gomez faces a challenge from Democratic Socialist Angela Gonzales-Torres. The five-term congressmember won the June primary by double digits but has bled support amid a House ethics investigation into allegations of sexual assault, which he’s denied. A \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/newsletters/california-playbook/2026/10/27/poll-jimmy-gomez-tough-race-01135850\">recent poll\u003c/a> showed Gonzales-Torres leading 51% to Gomez’s 45%.\u003c/p>\n"
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"attrs": {
"text": "Upsets in Prop. 50 districts could endanger majority",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Upsets in Prop. 50 districts could endanger majority\u003c/h2>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Three incumbent Republican or former Republican lawmakers are expected to lose their jobs in the wake of Prop. 50.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Three incumbent Republican or former Republican lawmakers are expected to lose their jobs in the wake of Prop. 50.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Either Rep. Young Kim or Rep. Ken Calvert, who are both competing for California’s 40th District, will be left jobless. Gerrymandering drastically reshaped Calvert’s 41st District, but rather than retire, he chose to challenge his colleague Kim. Both scrambled to “out-Trump” the other in the primary election but Kim has since returned to a more centrist, fiscally conservative approach.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Either Rep. Young Kim or Rep. Ken Calvert, who are both competing for California’s 40th District, will be left jobless. Gerrymandering drastically reshaped Calvert’s 41st District, but rather than retire, he chose to challenge his colleague Kim. Both scrambled to “out-Trump” the other in the primary election but Kim has since returned to a more centrist, fiscally conservative approach.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Rep. James Gallagher, who succeeded the late Rep. Doug LaMalfa in representing the rural north state in the 1st Congressional District, is poised to lose to former Senate President ProTem \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/mike-mcguire-93\">Mike McGuire\u003c/a>, a Democrat. The district was redrawn to remove several conservative and rural areas near the Oregon-California border. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Rep. James Gallagher, who succeeded the late Rep. Doug LaMalfa in representing the rural north state in the 1st Congressional District, is poised to lose to former Senate President ProTem \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/mike-mcguire-93\">Mike McGuire\u003c/a>, a Democrat. The district was redrawn to remove several conservative and rural areas near the Oregon-California border. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Rep. Kevin Kiley, who left the Republican Party earlier this year, is seeking reelection in the 6th Congressional District rather than his former 3rd District, which was significantly reshaped to favor Democrats. He faces Dr. Richard Pan, a physician and former state senator running as an anti-Make America Healthy Again candidate. Kiley hopes to pull votes from Republicans, independents and moderate Democrats.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Rep. Kevin Kiley, who left the Republican Party earlier this year, is seeking reelection in the 6th Congressional District rather than his former 3rd District, which was significantly reshaped to favor Democrats. He faces Dr. Richard Pan, a physician and former state senator running as an anti-Make America Healthy Again candidate. Kiley hopes to pull votes from Republicans, independents and moderate Democrats.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/11/california-election-2026-congress/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "These are the most consequential U.S. House races in California, which could determine control of Congress as well as the future direction of the Democratic Party.",
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"title": "Will Democrats Control Congress? Their Path Runs Through California. Watch These Races | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003cem>This story was originally published by \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/\">CalMatters\u003c/a>. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/subscribe-to-calmatters/\">Sign up\u003c/a> for their newsletters.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/california\">California \u003c/a>voters will play a key role in determining which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives, and by how much, as voting for the 2026 midterm election concludes Tuesday.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Democrats are poised to flip at least three seats currently held by California Republicans after voters \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062781/proposition-50-passes-in-california-boosting-democrats-in-fight-for-us-house-control\">approved Proposition 50 last year\u003c/a>, which redrew five of California’s districts to favor Democrats as a countermeasure to pro-Republican gerrymandering in Texas. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The remaining two redrawn districts — one in the Central Valley and the other in San Diego and Riverside counties — are more competitive, even though Democrats outnumber Republicans in voter registration.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg\" alt=\"A sign says 'Vote Here!' with an arrow pointing to a polling place.\" class=\"wp-image-12011911\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/10/241028-EarlyVoting-30-BL_qed-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A sign reads, ‘Vote Here!’ outside of San Francisco City Hall on Oct. 28, 2024. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A handful of races feature progressive challengers seeking to oust longtime incumbents who could push the party to the left if they are successful. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Several California congressional races are expected to be close, as counties tabulate ballots received up to seven days after Election Day. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here’s what CalMatters is watching:\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Central Valley, San Diego area seats pivotal\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">California’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12107318/central-valley-farmers-face-rising-costs-is-it-enough-to-flip-a-house-seat\">most hotly contested race\u003c/a> features 12-year Republican incumbent Rep. David Valadao of Hanford, a dairy farmer and perpetual target for national Democrats, and political newcomer Randy Villegas, a political science professor. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Democrats hope Villegas, who is endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, can defy conventional political wisdom and win in the historically conservative, agriculture-heavy Central Valley. Villegas supports Medicare for All and universal child care, although he has also called to suspend federal taxes on gas and diesel.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Valadao, the lone remaining Republican who voted to impeach President Donald Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021 riots, is seeking his seventh term. He touts the importance of bipartisanship and independent thinking, but has faced tough questioning over his decision to support Trump’s megabill that will ultimately \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/health/2026/08/medi-cal-the-cut-healthcare-threatened/\">strip health care coverage\u003c/a> from more than 2 million Californians in the next four years.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg\" alt=\"Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California's Central Valley.\" class=\"wp-image-12106862\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/villegas-valadao-47b1a6c2-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Randy Villegas (L) and David Valadao (R) are locked in a tight battle for the 22nd Congressional District seat in California’s Central Valley. (Mario Tama/Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Further south in San Diego and Riverside counties, two local elected officials — Marni von Wilpert, a Democratic San Diego City Council, and Republican San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond — are competing to fill the seat of Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, who chose to retire rather than seek reelection in a redrawn district. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Von Wilpert and Desmond are running traditionally centrist campaigns that harken to \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congress-48-wonwilpert-desmond/\">pre-Trump politics\u003c/a>. Von Wilpert has eschewed the insurgent progressive left and instead campaigned with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Desmond has worked overtime to distance himself from Trump and the president’s MAGA rhetoric, despite receiving Trump’s endorsement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Public polls \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/california-us-house-48-polls-2026.html\">have consistently shown\u003c/a> von Wilpert with a slight lead over Desmond, and the nonpartisan Cook Political Report switched the race from “tossup” to “lean Democrat” back in March. Internal campaign polling suggests the race is close.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Progressives try to remake Democratic Party\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Several California races feature two Democrats because of the state’s top-two primary election system. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among the most-watched is the \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/congressional-district-11-wiener-chan-debate/\">race to succeed former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a>, who has endorsed Connie Chan, a San Francisco supervisor. Chan, a Chinese immigrant from Taiwan, is known for \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/08/wiener-chan-san-francisco-congress-pelosi/\">opposing urban development\u003c/a> that could displace tenants or disrupt a neighborhood’s character. She faces state Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/scott-wiener-100936\">Scott Wiener,\u003c/a> a prolific legislator who has authored several laws to expedite housing production and secure competitive wages on state-subsidized projects. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the Sacramento area, an \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/10/california-congress-7th-district-race/\">intergenerational “battle of the ages”\u003c/a> is underway between Rep. Doris Matsui, 82, and Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, 41. Matsui has a massive financial advantage and has loaned her campaign $4 million since the primary. Vang has political momentum as a young, insurgent progressive who is media savvy and able to directly engage with supporters via TikTok and Instagram.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And in Los Angeles, incumbent Rep. Jimmy Gomez faces a challenge from Democratic Socialist Angela Gonzales-Torres. The five-term congressmember won the June primary by double digits but has bled support amid a House ethics investigation into allegations of sexual assault, which he’s denied. A \u003ca href=\"https://www.politico.com/newsletters/california-playbook/2026/10/27/poll-jimmy-gomez-tough-race-01135850\">recent poll\u003c/a> showed Gonzales-Torres leading 51% to Gomez’s 45%.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003ch2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Upsets in Prop. 50 districts could endanger majority\u003c/h2>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Three incumbent Republican or former Republican lawmakers are expected to lose their jobs in the wake of Prop. 50.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Either Rep. Young Kim or Rep. Ken Calvert, who are both competing for California’s 40th District, will be left jobless. Gerrymandering drastically reshaped Calvert’s 41st District, but rather than retire, he chose to challenge his colleague Kim. Both scrambled to “out-Trump” the other in the primary election but Kim has since returned to a more centrist, fiscally conservative approach.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep. James Gallagher, who succeeded the late Rep. Doug LaMalfa in representing the rural north state in the 1st Congressional District, is poised to lose to former Senate President ProTem \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.digitaldemocracy.org/legislators/mike-mcguire-93\">Mike McGuire\u003c/a>, a Democrat. The district was redrawn to remove several conservative and rural areas near the Oregon-California border. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep. Kevin Kiley, who left the Republican Party earlier this year, is seeking reelection in the 6th Congressional District rather than his former 3rd District, which was significantly reshaped to favor Democrats. He faces Dr. Richard Pan, a physician and former state senator running as an anti-Make America Healthy Again candidate. Kiley hopes to pull votes from Republicans, independents and moderate Democrats.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003cem>This article was \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/politics/2026/11/california-election-2026-congress/\">originally published on CalMatters\u003c/a> and was republished under the \u003ca href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives\u003c/a> license.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "san-franciscos-breakup-with-pge-could-cost-22-5-billion-utility-tells-state",
"title": "San Francisco’s Breakup With PG&E Could Cost $22.5 Billion, Utility Tells State",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco’s Breakup With PG&E Could Cost $22.5 Billion, Utility Tells State | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A government takeover of PG&E’s grid in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> comes with a whopping $22.5 billion price tag, the company told state regulators on Tuesday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">PG&E said in testimony to the California Public Utilities Commission, which determines the value of the company’s assets, that the move to a government-run utility would incur costs of $13.9 billion for electric and property assets in the city, $7.6 billion in damages for business severance and $1 billion for physical separation severance. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The costs are significantly more than San Francisco’s earlier valuation of around $3.4 billion, which the company said only includes fair-market value of assets. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">City Attorney David Chiu said the company’s asking price is bold after the city experienced 40 large-scale blackouts — roughly one a week — since a huge outage \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068177/pge-outage-leaves-130000-across-san-francisco-without-power\">hit more than 100,000 residents\u003c/a> last December.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100986\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">City Attorney David Chiu speaks at a press conference at City Hall in San Francisco on Sept. 22, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“A utility with a financial interest in protecting its monopoly doesn’t have the last word on what its assets are worth. There’s a process to determine the true cost,” Chiu said. “We look forward to learning more through the CPUC’s valuation process on this absurdly inflated number.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Separately, city officials have called on state regulators to investigate the company for the blackouts that have plagued residents, along with a litany of other issues, including recent fires caused by PG&E equipment and delayed infrastructure projects. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Officials have long explored the possibility of cutting the cord with the utility giant, submitting a valuation petition to state regulators back in July 2021 to initiate the process of determining the value of the company’s assets. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, who authored legislation that would help the city break with PG&E, said in a statement that the estimate is an attempt to rip off customers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“PG&E’s credibility with the public was already low, but this absurd estimate — which appears to demand taxpayers foot the bill for billions of dollars in made-up business expenses — managed to reach a new low,” Wiener said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">District 1 Supervisor Connie Chan said officials were expecting a hefty estimate from the company. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“For them to come in to declare an evaluation of over $20 billion for this infrastructure brings up a lot of questions about how they’ve been maintaining it, and the true value of the system,” Chan said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nancy Hayden Crowley, a spokesperson for the SFPUC, said the commission is still reviewing the utility’s filings, but noted that the company’s entire system is worth around $60 billion — and the city only makes up “about 5% of PG&E’s electricity system demand,” she wrote in a statement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“We’ve gone to the state utility regulator to get an impartial assessment of what the assets San Francisco wants to buy are really worth,” Hayden Crowley said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">PG&E said the city “significantly undervalues” the company’s assets, assigning no value to 2,000 real estate interests in the city. In addition, the underground distribution system in the city has higher construction costs that PG&E said the city failed to include. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Blue trucks with 'pg and e' logo on them sit parked in a lot with the white and black blurry pattern of a fence in the foreground\" class=\"wp-image-11943199\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">PG&E trucks sit inside a Mission District facility owned by the utility. (Sheraz Sadiq/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“A government takeover of our grid is not the right solution for our San Francisco customers,” PG&E Corporation CEO Patti Poppe said in a statement. “We have decades of specialized expertise operating San Francisco’s complex electric system. And now our filing shows that a takeover doesn’t make financial sense for customers.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When asked about PG&E’s claim about the city not including certain costs in its valuation, Chiu said they were still reviewing the filings, but that “their explanations don’t make sense.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener said the company is not entitled to separation severance, and called the request “unprecedented.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Michael Wara, a senior researcher at the Stanford Woods Center for the Environment, said both valuations are missing costs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">PG&E’s customer service arm that deals with billing and managing meters is not something San Francisco has set up, and is “an expensive system” the city would have to recreate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“All of this has to happen at a cost that is lower than the current PG&E cost to provide service to San Francisco,” Wara said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-group is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The true cost of the transition, he said, is probably somewhere in the middle. PG&E’s estimate is likely the ceiling. \u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“But the challenge [for officials] is that if you go much above $3.4 billion as the purchase price, you’re no longer saving money for San Franciscans,” Wara said. “Because the city would have to come up with $3.4 billion.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">CPUC previously \u003ca href=\"https://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/Efile/G000/M571/K129/571129240.PDF\">expected\u003c/a> to make a final decision on the asset values in 2027, but proceedings are likely to take longer than that. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>PG&E said in testimony to the California Public Utilities Commission, which determines the value of the company’s assets, that the move to a government-run utility would incur costs of $13.9 billion for electric and property assets in the city, $7.6 billion in damages for business severance and $1 billion for physical separation severance. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The costs are significantly more than San Francisco’s earlier valuation of around $3.4 billion, which the company said only includes fair-market value of assets. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>City Attorney David Chiu said the company’s asking price is bold after the city experienced 40 large-scale blackouts — roughly one a week — since a huge outage \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068177/pge-outage-leaves-130000-across-san-francisco-without-power\">hit more than 100,000 residents\u003c/a> last December.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>City Attorney David Chiu said the company’s asking price is bold after the city experienced 40 large-scale blackouts — roughly one a week — since a huge outage \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068177/pge-outage-leaves-130000-across-san-francisco-without-power\">hit more than 100,000 residents\u003c/a> last December.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100986\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">City Attorney David Chiu speaks at a press conference at City Hall in San Francisco on Sept. 22, 2026.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“A utility with a financial interest in protecting its monopoly doesn’t have the last word on what its assets are worth. There’s a process to determine the true cost,” Chiu said. “We look forward to learning more through the CPUC’s valuation process on this absurdly inflated number.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Separately, city officials have called on state regulators to investigate the company for the blackouts that have plagued residents, along with a litany of other issues, including recent fires caused by PG&E equipment and delayed infrastructure projects. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, who authored legislation that would help the city break with PG&E, said in a statement that the estimate is an attempt to rip off customers. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, who authored legislation that would help the city break with PG&E, said in a statement that the estimate is an attempt to rip off customers. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“PG&E’s credibility with the public was already low, but this absurd estimate — which appears to demand taxpayers foot the bill for billions of dollars in made-up business expenses — managed to reach a new low,” Wiener said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“PG&E’s credibility with the public was already low, but this absurd estimate — which appears to demand taxpayers foot the bill for billions of dollars in made-up business expenses — managed to reach a new low,” Wiener said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>District 1 Supervisor Connie Chan said officials were expecting a hefty estimate from the company. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“For them to come in to declare an evaluation of over $20 billion for this infrastructure brings up a lot of questions about how they’ve been maintaining it, and the true value of the system,” Chan said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“For them to come in to declare an evaluation of over $20 billion for this infrastructure brings up a lot of questions about how they’ve been maintaining it, and the true value of the system,” Chan said. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Nancy Hayden Crowley, a spokesperson for the SFPUC, said the commission is still reviewing the utility’s filings, but noted that the company’s entire system is worth around $60 billion — and the city only makes up “about 5% of PG&E’s electricity system demand,” she wrote in a statement. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Nancy Hayden Crowley, a spokesperson for the SFPUC, said the commission is still reviewing the utility’s filings, but noted that the company’s entire system is worth around $60 billion — and the city only makes up “about 5% of PG&E’s electricity system demand,” she wrote in a statement. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We’ve gone to the state utility regulator to get an impartial assessment of what the assets San Francisco wants to buy are really worth,” Hayden Crowley said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>PG&E said the city “significantly undervalues” the company’s assets, assigning no value to 2,000 real estate interests in the city. In addition, the underground distribution system in the city has higher construction costs that PG&E said the city failed to include. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“A government takeover of our grid is not the right solution for our San Francisco customers,” PG&E Corporation CEO Patti Poppe said in a statement. “We have decades of specialized expertise operating San Francisco’s complex electric system. And now our filing shows that a takeover doesn’t make financial sense for customers.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Michael Wara, a senior researcher at the Stanford Woods Center for the Environment, said both valuations are missing costs. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>PG&E’s customer service arm that deals with billing and managing meters is not something San Francisco has set up, and is “an expensive system” the city would have to recreate. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“But the challenge [for officials] is that if you go much above $3.4 billion as the purchase price, you’re no longer saving money for San Franciscans,” Wara said. “Because the city would have to come up with $3.4 billion.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>CPUC previously \u003ca href=\"https://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/Efile/G000/M571/K129/571129240.PDF\">expected\u003c/a> to make a final decision on the asset values in 2027, but proceedings are likely to take longer than that. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "PG&E told the California Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday that a takeover would incur billions in separation and severance costs.",
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"title": "San Francisco’s Breakup With PG&E Could Cost $22.5 Billion, Utility Tells State | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A government takeover of PG&E’s grid in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> comes with a whopping $22.5 billion price tag, the company told state regulators on Tuesday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">PG&E said in testimony to the California Public Utilities Commission, which determines the value of the company’s assets, that the move to a government-run utility would incur costs of $13.9 billion for electric and property assets in the city, $7.6 billion in damages for business severance and $1 billion for physical separation severance. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The costs are significantly more than San Francisco’s earlier valuation of around $3.4 billion, which the company said only includes fair-market value of assets. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">City Attorney David Chiu said the company’s asking price is bold after the city experienced 40 large-scale blackouts — roughly one a week — since a huge outage \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12068177/pge-outage-leaves-130000-across-san-francisco-without-power\">hit more than 100,000 residents\u003c/a> last December.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12100986\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/09/260922-TruthSocialSuit-14-BL-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">City Attorney David Chiu speaks at a press conference at City Hall in San Francisco on Sept. 22, 2026. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“A utility with a financial interest in protecting its monopoly doesn’t have the last word on what its assets are worth. There’s a process to determine the true cost,” Chiu said. “We look forward to learning more through the CPUC’s valuation process on this absurdly inflated number.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Separately, city officials have called on state regulators to investigate the company for the blackouts that have plagued residents, along with a litany of other issues, including recent fires caused by PG&E equipment and delayed infrastructure projects. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Officials have long explored the possibility of cutting the cord with the utility giant, submitting a valuation petition to state regulators back in July 2021 to initiate the process of determining the value of the company’s assets. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, who authored legislation that would help the city break with PG&E, said in a statement that the estimate is an attempt to rip off customers. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“PG&E’s credibility with the public was already low, but this absurd estimate — which appears to demand taxpayers foot the bill for billions of dollars in made-up business expenses — managed to reach a new low,” Wiener said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">District 1 Supervisor Connie Chan said officials were expecting a hefty estimate from the company. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“For them to come in to declare an evaluation of over $20 billion for this infrastructure brings up a lot of questions about how they’ve been maintaining it, and the true value of the system,” Chan said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nancy Hayden Crowley, a spokesperson for the SFPUC, said the commission is still reviewing the utility’s filings, but noted that the company’s entire system is worth around $60 billion — and the city only makes up “about 5% of PG&E’s electricity system demand,” she wrote in a statement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“We’ve gone to the state utility regulator to get an impartial assessment of what the assets San Francisco wants to buy are really worth,” Hayden Crowley said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">PG&E said the city “significantly undervalues” the company’s assets, assigning no value to 2,000 real estate interests in the city. In addition, the underground distribution system in the city has higher construction costs that PG&E said the city failed to include. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut.jpg\" alt=\"Blue trucks with 'pg and e' logo on them sit parked in a lot with the white and black blurry pattern of a fence in the foreground\" class=\"wp-image-11943199\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/03/RS34908_P1100952-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">PG&E trucks sit inside a Mission District facility owned by the utility. (Sheraz Sadiq/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“A government takeover of our grid is not the right solution for our San Francisco customers,” PG&E Corporation CEO Patti Poppe said in a statement. “We have decades of specialized expertise operating San Francisco’s complex electric system. And now our filing shows that a takeover doesn’t make financial sense for customers.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When asked about PG&E’s claim about the city not including certain costs in its valuation, Chiu said they were still reviewing the filings, but that “their explanations don’t make sense.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wiener said the company is not entitled to separation severance, and called the request “unprecedented.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Michael Wara, a senior researcher at the Stanford Woods Center for the Environment, said both valuations are missing costs. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">PG&E’s customer service arm that deals with billing and managing meters is not something San Francisco has set up, and is “an expensive system” the city would have to recreate. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“All of this has to happen at a cost that is lower than the current PG&E cost to provide service to San Francisco,” Wara said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-group is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The true cost of the transition, he said, is probably somewhere in the middle. PG&E’s estimate is likely the ceiling. \u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">“But the challenge [for officials] is that if you go much above $3.4 billion as the purchase price, you’re no longer saving money for San Franciscans,” Wara said. “Because the city would have to come up with $3.4 billion.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">CPUC previously \u003ca href=\"https://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/Efile/G000/M571/K129/571129240.PDF\">expected\u003c/a> to make a final decision on the asset values in 2027, but proceedings are likely to take longer than that. \u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "san-francisco-is-ground-zero-for-ai-how-would-congressional-candidates-push-for-regulation",
"title": "San Francisco Is Ground Zero for AI. How Would Congressional Candidates Push for Regulation?",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco Is Ground Zero for AI. How Would Congressional Candidates Push for Regulation? | KQED",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>At the center of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/artificial-intelligence\">artificial intelligence\u003c/a> boom, candidates looking to represent San Francisco in Washington appear aligned on a common goal: AI must be regulated. But how to do that is where the debate really heats up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>State Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan are vying for Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s seat in Congress as the former House speaker prepares to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062796/nancy-pelosi-leaves-congress-after-38-years-defining-generations-of-democratic-power\">retire\u003c/a> after nearly four decades. They’re competing for votes at a time when concerns are rising around AI, from mass job loss to automated data privacy hacks and computer-driven nuclear war. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Consumers have not seen such rapid change with any new technology. I mean, you could look to the internet, you could to railroads, you can go all the way back and look at industrialization in the 1800s, but we’ve just never seen this sort of rapid development,” said Michele Neitz, a professor of law, technology and social transformation at the University of San Francisco School of Law. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Currently, there is no comprehensive federal framework regulating AI, and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102152/experts-urge-federal-lawmakers-to-regulate-ai-will-anyone-heed-their-alarm\">experts following AI\u003c/a> development closely say it’s time for lawmakers in Washington to set up guardrails even as President Donald Trump has suggested \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12103983/ai-founders-cheer-trumps-calls-for-the-industry-to-police-itself-on-safety\">AI companies will regulate themselves\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-1-copy-2-scaled-e1790958307792.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102554\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">State Sen. Scott Wiener during a debate with San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle co-hosted the debate. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That rapid development is happening more quickly than our political system can keep up,” Neitz said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener has long been vocal about the need to regulate and increase transparency around AI, and authored the country’s first \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12058013/newsom-signs-california-ai-transparency-bill-tailored-to-meet-tech-industry-tastes\">AI transparency bill\u003c/a>, which California passed in 2025. His first attempt at an AI safety bill included a “kill-switch” for disastrous scenarios and other safeguards; however, that bill was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The bill that did pass, SB 53, has since been adapted around the country, including by New York City, and other places like Connecticut have gone on to add even more comprehensive AI legislation focused on areas like education and workforce mandates. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Along the campaign trail, Wiener has leaned into that legislative experience and touted being an early advocate for AI safety. His vision for Congress is to create a federal regulatory body to oversee AI security, increase guardrails and protect whistleblowers, and expand unemployment to brace for waves of job displacement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a video advertisement, Wiener tells viewers that “AI is getting more powerful by the day, and the risks are very real.” He said that in Washington, he would continue to seek the kill-switch approach, along with more legal liability and safety standards and cooperation with other countries on AI safety.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener has also said that AI data centers should pick up the tab for their environmental costs, and he supports transitioning data centers towards greener energy, rather than a full ban on new facilities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan meanwhile has taken what Neitz said is the more “populist” approach, calling for a full moratorium on data centers and giving unions and AI workers a voice in regulation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In her own video on the topic, Chan pointed to a $3.9 billion tax break that Meta received last year to build data centers. “We’re going to regulate artificial intelligence to make sure we can protect our workforce and prioritize safety for the American people,” she said. “No more tax breaks for these billionaires and tech corporations.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She’s also criticized her opponent’s AI safety bill, calling it “watered down” and influenced by big tech interests. The bill also did not prevent major cyberattacks this year, where AI models \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092162/how-openais-models-escaped-their-sandbox-and-slipped-past-californias-ai-law\">hacked into other platforms\u003c/a> and breached government websites. Chan said the companies overseeing the models, OpenAI and Anthropic, should “absolutely” be held liable for the attacks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Instead of waiting for something catastrophic to happen and to have a so-called kill switch, it is important to have human oversight during the developmental phase of the technology,” Chan said at a debate this week hosted by \u003cem>Mission Local\u003c/em> and the \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>. “Can we trust the AI industries to police and regulate themselves? And can we trust any politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? I say no.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The advocacy group Public First Action, which is pushing for more AI regulation and has received money from the AI company Anthropic, has poured $3 million into Abundant Future, an independent expenditure committee supporting Wiener, Punchbowl News first reported. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-3-scaled-e1790958264709.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102556\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan during her debate with state Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle co-hosted the debate. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener, in the debate this week, said, “That PAC supports candidates who are pro-AI regulation, and because I have actually regulated AI and will lead in regulating AI in Congress, that is my understanding of why that PAC is supporting me.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He went on to defend his record, saying he “went to war with big tech to pass AI regulation in California.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In September, tech titans including Anthropic’s Dario Amodei and OpenAI’s Sam Altman, both leading San Francisco-based companies, made headlines for sounding the alarm about potentially devastating impacts of AI on humanity and called for regulations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But AI CEOs are not all in agreement on the issue. Others are advocating for self-regulation in order not to hinder development of the technology or risk falling behind China’s AI advancements. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1618\" height=\"1078\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103984\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000.jpg 1618w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000-1536x1023.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1618px) 100vw, 1618px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">President Donald Trump, center, next to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, left, and Elon Musk, right, speaks in the East Room of the White House in Washington on Sept. 29, 2026, surrounded by top executives of AI firms including, from top left, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Greg Brockman, President of OpenAI, House Speaker Mike Johnson, AMD CEO Lisa Su, Palo Alto Networks Chief Executive Nikesh Arora and David Sacks. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>President Donald Trump has pushed back against regulatory guardrails for AI, previously calling doomsday threats a “hoax.” In September, he signed a document with executives at Google, Anthropic, Meta, OpenAI, Nvidia and SpaceX that calls for “robust internal processes and controls to ensure that their technology behaves as intended.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both Chan and Wiener don’t trust the idea. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We must not allow the tech companies to write their own self-regulation,” Wiener said. “We need Congress to step up and regulate tech to make sure technology is serving the public and not harming the public, and that will be a priority for me.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Slowing down AI development has become the biggest political issue for many in the Bay Area. Wynd Kaufman, a retired former engineering teacher at City College of San Francisco, was one of several protesters arrested outside of the OpenAI headquarters last year, months before its CEO came out warning about the technology’s potential downsides. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Politicians are realizing that people do not want AI. We don’t want our environment degradation. We don’t want our rivers to run dry. We want our humanity and our privacy,” she said at an anti-AI protest on Thursday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Local politicians are weighing, too. In San Francisco, the Board of Supervisors recently \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099583/san-francisco-supervisors-push-for-moratorium-on-new-data-centers\">passed a 45-day moratorium\u003c/a> on allowing new data centers, which use tremendous amounts of energy to train and run AI models. The board’s decision followed nationwide trends where communities have pushed back on opening up new data centers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But negative sentiment around AI has put San Francisco leaders in a bind, particularly business-friendly leaders who are banking on the AI industry to revive the city’s local economy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Bay Area region has added more than 20,000 AI jobs over the past year, even amid massive waves of layoffs and overall contraction of the tech industry, according to CBRE’s 2026 Scoring Tech Talent report.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The concentration of talent, venture capital, leading universities and innovative companies continues to make the Bay Area the premier destination for AI development and investment,” said Colin Yasukochi, executive director of CBRE Tech Insights.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For whichever candidate wins, the questions around AI safety are not likely going away soon. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to Neitz, “2027 is going to be a big year in AI legislation regardless of the outcome of the midterms because the people are clamoring for it and Congress will need to respond.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>State Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan are vying for Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s seat in Congress as the former House speaker prepares to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062796/nancy-pelosi-leaves-congress-after-38-years-defining-generations-of-democratic-power\">retire\u003c/a> after nearly four decades. They’re competing for votes at a time when concerns are rising around AI, from mass job loss to automated data privacy hacks and computer-driven nuclear war. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>State Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan are vying for Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s seat in Congress as the former House speaker prepares to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062796/nancy-pelosi-leaves-congress-after-38-years-defining-generations-of-democratic-power\">retire\u003c/a> after nearly four decades. They’re competing for votes at a time when concerns are rising around AI, from mass job loss to automated data privacy hacks and computer-driven nuclear war. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Consumers have not seen such rapid change with any new technology. I mean, you could look to the internet, you could to railroads, you can go all the way back and look at industrialization in the 1800s, but we’ve just never seen this sort of rapid development,” said Michele Neitz, a professor of law, technology and social transformation at the University of San Francisco School of Law. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Currently, there is no comprehensive federal framework regulating AI, and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102152/experts-urge-federal-lawmakers-to-regulate-ai-will-anyone-heed-their-alarm\">experts following AI\u003c/a> development closely say it’s time for lawmakers in Washington to set up guardrails even as President Donald Trump has suggested \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12103983/ai-founders-cheer-trumps-calls-for-the-industry-to-police-itself-on-safety\">AI companies will regulate themselves\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“That rapid development is happening more quickly than our political system can keep up,” Neitz said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener has long been vocal about the need to regulate and increase transparency around AI, and authored the country’s first \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12058013/newsom-signs-california-ai-transparency-bill-tailored-to-meet-tech-industry-tastes\">AI transparency bill\u003c/a>, which California passed in 2025. His first attempt at an AI safety bill included a “kill-switch” for disastrous scenarios and other safeguards; however, that bill was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The bill that did pass, SB 53, has since been adapted around the country, including by New York City, and other places like Connecticut have gone on to add even more comprehensive AI legislation focused on areas like education and workforce mandates. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The bill that did pass, SB 53, has since been adapted around the country, including by New York City, and other places like Connecticut have gone on to add even more comprehensive AI legislation focused on areas like education and workforce mandates. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Along the campaign trail, Wiener has leaned into that legislative experience and touted being an early advocate for AI safety. His vision for Congress is to create a federal regulatory body to oversee AI security, increase guardrails and protect whistleblowers, and expand unemployment to brace for waves of job displacement. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In a video advertisement, Wiener tells viewers that “AI is getting more powerful by the day, and the risks are very real.” He said that in Washington, he would continue to seek the kill-switch approach, along with more legal liability and safety standards and cooperation with other countries on AI safety.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In a video advertisement, Wiener tells viewers that “AI is getting more powerful by the day, and the risks are very real.” He said that in Washington, he would continue to seek the kill-switch approach, along with more legal liability and safety standards and cooperation with other countries on AI safety.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener has also said that AI data centers should pick up the tab for their environmental costs, and he supports transitioning data centers towards greener energy, rather than a full ban on new facilities.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Wiener has also said that AI data centers should pick up the tab for their environmental costs, and he supports transitioning data centers towards greener energy, rather than a full ban on new facilities.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan meanwhile has taken what Neitz said is the more “populist” approach, calling for a full moratorium on data centers and giving unions and AI workers a voice in regulation.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In her own video on the topic, Chan pointed to a $3.9 billion tax break that Meta received last year to build data centers. “We’re going to regulate artificial intelligence to make sure we can protect our workforce and prioritize safety for the American people,” she said. “No more tax breaks for these billionaires and tech corporations.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>In her own video on the topic, Chan pointed to a $3.9 billion tax break that Meta received last year to build data centers. “We’re going to regulate artificial intelligence to make sure we can protect our workforce and prioritize safety for the American people,” she said. “No more tax breaks for these billionaires and tech corporations.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She’s also criticized her opponent’s AI safety bill, calling it “watered down” and influenced by big tech interests. The bill also did not prevent major cyberattacks this year, where AI models \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092162/how-openais-models-escaped-their-sandbox-and-slipped-past-californias-ai-law\">hacked into other platforms\u003c/a> and breached government websites. Chan said the companies overseeing the models, OpenAI and Anthropic, should “absolutely” be held liable for the attacks. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She’s also criticized her opponent’s AI safety bill, calling it “watered down” and influenced by big tech interests. The bill also did not prevent major cyberattacks this year, where AI models \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092162/how-openais-models-escaped-their-sandbox-and-slipped-past-californias-ai-law\">hacked into other platforms\u003c/a> and breached government websites. Chan said the companies overseeing the models, OpenAI and Anthropic, should “absolutely” be held liable for the attacks. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Instead of waiting for something catastrophic to happen and to have a so-called kill switch, it is important to have human oversight during the developmental phase of the technology,” Chan said at a debate this week hosted by \u003cem>Mission Local\u003c/em> and the \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>. “Can we trust the AI industries to police and regulate themselves? And can we trust any politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? I say no.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>“Instead of waiting for something catastrophic to happen and to have a so-called kill switch, it is important to have human oversight during the developmental phase of the technology,” Chan said at a debate this week hosted by \u003cem>Mission Local\u003c/em> and the \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>. “Can we trust the AI industries to police and regulate themselves? And can we trust any politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? I say no.”\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The advocacy group Public First Action, which is pushing for more AI regulation and has received money from the AI company Anthropic, has poured $3 million into Abundant Future, an independent expenditure committee supporting Wiener, Punchbowl News first reported. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>The advocacy group Public First Action, which is pushing for more AI regulation and has received money from the AI company Anthropic, has poured $3 million into Abundant Future, an independent expenditure committee supporting Wiener, Punchbowl News first reported. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-3-scaled-e1790958264709.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102556\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan during her debate with state Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle co-hosted the debate.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-3-scaled-e1790958264709.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102556\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan during her debate with state Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle co-hosted the debate.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener, in the debate this week, said, “That PAC supports candidates who are pro-AI regulation, and because I have actually regulated AI and will lead in regulating AI in Congress, that is my understanding of why that PAC is supporting me.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>President Donald Trump has pushed back against regulatory guardrails for AI, previously calling doomsday threats a “hoax.” In September, he signed a document with executives at Google, Anthropic, Meta, OpenAI, Nvidia and SpaceX that calls for “robust internal processes and controls to ensure that their technology behaves as intended.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We must not allow the tech companies to write their own self-regulation,” Wiener said. “We need Congress to step up and regulate tech to make sure technology is serving the public and not harming the public, and that will be a priority for me.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Slowing down AI development has become the biggest political issue for many in the Bay Area. Wynd Kaufman, a retired former engineering teacher at City College of San Francisco, was one of several protesters arrested outside of the OpenAI headquarters last year, months before its CEO came out warning about the technology’s potential downsides. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Politicians are realizing that people do not want AI. We don’t want our environment degradation. We don’t want our rivers to run dry. We want our humanity and our privacy,” she said at an anti-AI protest on Thursday. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Local politicians are weighing, too. In San Francisco, the Board of Supervisors recently \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099583/san-francisco-supervisors-push-for-moratorium-on-new-data-centers\">passed a 45-day moratorium\u003c/a> on allowing new data centers, which use tremendous amounts of energy to train and run AI models. The board’s decision followed nationwide trends where communities have pushed back on opening up new data centers.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>But negative sentiment around AI has put San Francisco leaders in a bind, particularly business-friendly leaders who are banking on the AI industry to revive the city’s local economy. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The Bay Area region has added more than 20,000 AI jobs over the past year, even amid massive waves of layoffs and overall contraction of the tech industry, according to CBRE’s 2026 Scoring Tech Talent report.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The concentration of talent, venture capital, leading universities and innovative companies continues to make the Bay Area the premier destination for AI development and investment,” said Colin Yasukochi, executive director of CBRE Tech Insights.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>For whichever candidate wins, the questions around AI safety are not likely going away soon. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>According to Neitz, “2027 is going to be a big year in AI legislation regardless of the outcome of the midterms because the people are clamoring for it and Congress will need to respond.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"title": "San Francisco Is Ground Zero for AI. How Would Congressional Candidates Push for Regulation? | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>At the center of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/artificial-intelligence\">artificial intelligence\u003c/a> boom, candidates looking to represent San Francisco in Washington appear aligned on a common goal: AI must be regulated. But how to do that is where the debate really heats up. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>State Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan are vying for Rep. Nancy Pelosi’s seat in Congress as the former House speaker prepares to \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062796/nancy-pelosi-leaves-congress-after-38-years-defining-generations-of-democratic-power\">retire\u003c/a> after nearly four decades. They’re competing for votes at a time when concerns are rising around AI, from mass job loss to automated data privacy hacks and computer-driven nuclear war. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Consumers have not seen such rapid change with any new technology. I mean, you could look to the internet, you could to railroads, you can go all the way back and look at industrialization in the 1800s, but we’ve just never seen this sort of rapid development,” said Michele Neitz, a professor of law, technology and social transformation at the University of San Francisco School of Law. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Currently, there is no comprehensive federal framework regulating AI, and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102152/experts-urge-federal-lawmakers-to-regulate-ai-will-anyone-heed-their-alarm\">experts following AI\u003c/a> development closely say it’s time for lawmakers in Washington to set up guardrails even as President Donald Trump has suggested \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12103983/ai-founders-cheer-trumps-calls-for-the-industry-to-police-itself-on-safety\">AI companies will regulate themselves\u003c/a>. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-1-copy-2-scaled-e1790958307792.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102554\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">State Sen. Scott Wiener during a debate with San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle co-hosted the debate. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“That rapid development is happening more quickly than our political system can keep up,” Neitz said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener has long been vocal about the need to regulate and increase transparency around AI, and authored the country’s first \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12058013/newsom-signs-california-ai-transparency-bill-tailored-to-meet-tech-industry-tastes\">AI transparency bill\u003c/a>, which California passed in 2025. His first attempt at an AI safety bill included a “kill-switch” for disastrous scenarios and other safeguards; however, that bill was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The bill that did pass, SB 53, has since been adapted around the country, including by New York City, and other places like Connecticut have gone on to add even more comprehensive AI legislation focused on areas like education and workforce mandates. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Along the campaign trail, Wiener has leaned into that legislative experience and touted being an early advocate for AI safety. His vision for Congress is to create a federal regulatory body to oversee AI security, increase guardrails and protect whistleblowers, and expand unemployment to brace for waves of job displacement. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In a video advertisement, Wiener tells viewers that “AI is getting more powerful by the day, and the risks are very real.” He said that in Washington, he would continue to seek the kill-switch approach, along with more legal liability and safety standards and cooperation with other countries on AI safety.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener has also said that AI data centers should pick up the tab for their environmental costs, and he supports transitioning data centers towards greener energy, rather than a full ban on new facilities.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan meanwhile has taken what Neitz said is the more “populist” approach, calling for a full moratorium on data centers and giving unions and AI workers a voice in regulation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In her own video on the topic, Chan pointed to a $3.9 billion tax break that Meta received last year to build data centers. “We’re going to regulate artificial intelligence to make sure we can protect our workforce and prioritize safety for the American people,” she said. “No more tax breaks for these billionaires and tech corporations.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She’s also criticized her opponent’s AI safety bill, calling it “watered down” and influenced by big tech interests. The bill also did not prevent major cyberattacks this year, where AI models \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12092162/how-openais-models-escaped-their-sandbox-and-slipped-past-californias-ai-law\">hacked into other platforms\u003c/a> and breached government websites. Chan said the companies overseeing the models, OpenAI and Anthropic, should “absolutely” be held liable for the attacks. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Instead of waiting for something catastrophic to happen and to have a so-called kill switch, it is important to have human oversight during the developmental phase of the technology,” Chan said at a debate this week hosted by \u003cem>Mission Local\u003c/em> and the \u003cem>New York Times\u003c/em>. “Can we trust the AI industries to police and regulate themselves? And can we trust any politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? I say no.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The advocacy group Public First Action, which is pushing for more AI regulation and has received money from the AI company Anthropic, has poured $3 million into Abundant Future, an independent expenditure committee supporting Wiener, Punchbowl News first reported. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-3-scaled-e1790958264709.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102556\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan during her debate with state Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle co-hosted the debate. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener, in the debate this week, said, “That PAC supports candidates who are pro-AI regulation, and because I have actually regulated AI and will lead in regulating AI in Congress, that is my understanding of why that PAC is supporting me.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He went on to defend his record, saying he “went to war with big tech to pass AI regulation in California.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In September, tech titans including Anthropic’s Dario Amodei and OpenAI’s Sam Altman, both leading San Francisco-based companies, made headlines for sounding the alarm about potentially devastating impacts of AI on humanity and called for regulations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But AI CEOs are not all in agreement on the issue. Others are advocating for self-regulation in order not to hinder development of the technology or risk falling behind China’s AI advancements. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1618\" height=\"1078\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12103984\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000.jpg 1618w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/AP26272702876598-c2e61000-1536x1023.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1618px) 100vw, 1618px\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">President Donald Trump, center, next to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, left, and Elon Musk, right, speaks in the East Room of the White House in Washington on Sept. 29, 2026, surrounded by top executives of AI firms including, from top left, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Greg Brockman, President of OpenAI, House Speaker Mike Johnson, AMD CEO Lisa Su, Palo Alto Networks Chief Executive Nikesh Arora and David Sacks. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>President Donald Trump has pushed back against regulatory guardrails for AI, previously calling doomsday threats a “hoax.” In September, he signed a document with executives at Google, Anthropic, Meta, OpenAI, Nvidia and SpaceX that calls for “robust internal processes and controls to ensure that their technology behaves as intended.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both Chan and Wiener don’t trust the idea. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We must not allow the tech companies to write their own self-regulation,” Wiener said. “We need Congress to step up and regulate tech to make sure technology is serving the public and not harming the public, and that will be a priority for me.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Slowing down AI development has become the biggest political issue for many in the Bay Area. Wynd Kaufman, a retired former engineering teacher at City College of San Francisco, was one of several protesters arrested outside of the OpenAI headquarters last year, months before its CEO came out warning about the technology’s potential downsides. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Politicians are realizing that people do not want AI. We don’t want our environment degradation. We don’t want our rivers to run dry. We want our humanity and our privacy,” she said at an anti-AI protest on Thursday. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Local politicians are weighing, too. In San Francisco, the Board of Supervisors recently \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099583/san-francisco-supervisors-push-for-moratorium-on-new-data-centers\">passed a 45-day moratorium\u003c/a> on allowing new data centers, which use tremendous amounts of energy to train and run AI models. The board’s decision followed nationwide trends where communities have pushed back on opening up new data centers.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>But negative sentiment around AI has put San Francisco leaders in a bind, particularly business-friendly leaders who are banking on the AI industry to revive the city’s local economy. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The Bay Area region has added more than 20,000 AI jobs over the past year, even amid massive waves of layoffs and overall contraction of the tech industry, according to CBRE’s 2026 Scoring Tech Talent report.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The concentration of talent, venture capital, leading universities and innovative companies continues to make the Bay Area the premier destination for AI development and investment,” said Colin Yasukochi, executive director of CBRE Tech Insights.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For whichever candidate wins, the questions around AI safety are not likely going away soon. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>According to Neitz, “2027 is going to be a big year in AI legislation regardless of the outcome of the midterms because the people are clamoring for it and Congress will need to respond.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>As warnings of an artificial intelligence-driven doomsday loom, candidates looking to represent the home of the AI boom in Congress are pitching San Francisco voters on their plan to prevent disaster.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ideas like data center moratoriums and AI kill-switches have shifted from niche topics to key questions for voters, a fact made clear at a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102537/connie-chan-scott-wiener-debate-watch-live\">congressional debate on Thursday night\u003c/a> moderated by KQED’s Marisa Lagos and Scott Shafer, along with Joe Garofoli of the San Francisco Chronicle. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nancy Pelosi is retiring after representing the city in Congress for nearly 40 years, and the hotly contested race has come down to two Democrats: state Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/scott-wiener\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a> and San Francisco Supervisor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/connie-chan\">Connie Chan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While both support \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102152/experts-urge-federal-lawmakers-to-regulate-ai-will-anyone-heed-their-alarm\">regulating AI\u003c/a> in some fashion, Chan and Wiener had diverging approaches when it came to the best way to move forward as the technology advances quickly. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“AI is arguably the most powerful technology in the history of the world … and self-regulation does not work,” Wiener said, touting his record of authoring the country’s first AI safety bill for the state of California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-1-copy-2-scaled-e1790958307792.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102554\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">State Sen. Scott Wiener during a debate with San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener’s first attempt at an AI safety bill included an AI “kill-switch” and other safeguards; however, that bill was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12100624/newsom-orders-california-agencies-to-develop-new-ai-safety-plans-after-rejecting-tougher-law\">vetoed\u003c/a> by Gov. Gavin Newsom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener has said that it should be up to individual communities whether or not to ban data centers. Chan, meanwhile, argued for a moratorium on data centers to “have a moment to regulate artificial intelligence.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She called out her opponent for counting several major tech leaders among his supporters. “Can we trust politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? The answer is no, we cannot. We have to make sure that workers and unions are actually at the table to regulate this AI technology,” Chan said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener fired back that plenty of tech industry leaders tried to stop his AI bill and he pushed it through nonetheless. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I do battle with some of the biggest and wealthiest corporations in the history of the planet,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Another tense moment around AI came when the candidates were asked about a recent sexual assault allegation in local San Francisco politics. Prominent local business owner \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102333/new-allegations-surface-against-san-francisco-supervisor-candidate-manny-yekutiel\">Manny Yekutiel dropped his bid\u003c/a> to become the next District 8 supervisor just hours before the debate after being accused by multiple people of sexual assault.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both Chan and Wiener urged Yekutiel to exit the race and said more work needs to be done to listen to and support survivors of assault and harassment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan pointed out that she herself had to fight against racism and sexism in the political arena recently when Wiener’s team released an AI chatbot mimicking Chan, “mocking me, putting words in my mouth and impersonating me,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener attempted to diffuse the situation, turning to Chan and apologizing directly to her about the AI chatbot, which his team took down following public criticism elevated by Pelosi, who has endorsed Chan. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was a terrible mistake, which is why we took it down,” Wiener said. “I take full responsibility for that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan honed in on her background during the debate, sharing how she was born in Hong Kong before moving to Taiwan and later immigrating to San Francisco at age 13, growing up in Chinatown before building a career in public service. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She also underscored that she is a working mom and has garnered wide support from unions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener, who is openly gay and previously served as a San Francisco supervisor, has backing from the state and local Democratic Party, as well as some well-heeled tech leaders.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He’s so far outraised his opponent, but Chan has built up her war chest with the help of Pelosi’s fundraising machine and support from Saikait Chakrabarti, a wealthy former tech engineer whom she defeated in the June primary. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both candidates were given the opportunity to ask each other a question at Thursday’s debate, with Wiener honing in on Chan’s reputation for blocking housing, like a proposed 495-unit building at 469 Stevenson St., and that she voted against Mayor Daniel Lurie’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065204/everything-you-need-to-know-about-san-franciscos-family-zoning-plan\">rezoning plan\u003c/a> at a time when San Francisco is facing a housing crisis. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan said those decisions were made based on listening to constituents in the surrounding areas, and that in Congress she would push for more public housing and assistance for renters.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-3-scaled-e1790958264709.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102556\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan during her debate with state Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We can build homes because we need to build homes, but we also need to protect our tenants and small businesses,” she said. “It’s about serving the community and … sometimes that’s not a winner-takes-all approach.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener’s cultivated a reputation in Sacramento for passing legislation to spur more housing development. But Chan took swings at his support from tech- and real estate-aligned groups, implying that she is the candidate who will stand up to billionaires. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener recently opposed two wealth taxes, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085528/san-francisco-props-c-d-trailing\">Proposition D in San Francisco\u003c/a>, which he said would disincentivize business at a time when the city’s economy is still recovering, and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099825/california-billionaires-tax-has-a-slim-lead-in-new-poll-but-still-a-lot-of-work-to-do\">Proposition 40 in California\u003c/a>, saying that the one-time tax on the November ballot doesn’t offer a sustainable solution to funding healthcare. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Instead, Wiener said he supports Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s ultramillionaire tax. “I do work for the people, and that’s why I’m endorsed by the Sierra Club and Dolores Huerta,” Wiener said. “I support reversing the tax cuts by (Donald) Trump and (George) Bush.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On foreign policy, both candidates said they would support sending defensive arms to Ukraine as well as Taiwan, if China were to invade the island. They also both stressed that diplomacy and humanitarian aid should be the priority. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I don’t want U.S. troops to be in a war with China,” Wiener said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On China, Wiener also stressed that it’s in both the U.S. and China’s best interest to create guardrails around AI technology. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We do not need some mega arms race where we’re like, who’s going to be the first to potentially melt down the world,” Wiener said. He slammed Trump for eroding the relationship between the U.S. and longtime allies and stressed that in the age of AI, members of Congress need to work together to pass regulations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We need leadership in this country that will actually work with other countries,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan said the U.S. should not frame AI regulation around a race with China over who can develop the technology faster but around protecting humanity. While Wiener intimated that she had never worked on AI regulation, she fired back that she’s worked on local laws to stop landlords from using AI to increase rents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“America can be a leader of innovation without sacrificing safety and without sacrificing our workforce,” Chan said. “We need to demand human oversight, not just when something catastrophic happens.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Ideas like data center moratoriums and AI kill-switches have shifted from niche topics to key questions for voters, a fact made clear at a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102537/connie-chan-scott-wiener-debate-watch-live\">congressional debate on Thursday night\u003c/a> moderated by KQED’s Marisa Lagos and Scott Shafer, along with Joe Garofoli of the San Francisco Chronicle. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Nancy Pelosi is retiring after representing the city in Congress for nearly 40 years, and the hotly contested race has come down to two Democrats: state Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/scott-wiener\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a> and San Francisco Supervisor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/connie-chan\">Connie Chan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>While both support \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102152/experts-urge-federal-lawmakers-to-regulate-ai-will-anyone-heed-their-alarm\">regulating AI\u003c/a> in some fashion, Chan and Wiener had diverging approaches when it came to the best way to move forward as the technology advances quickly. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“AI is arguably the most powerful technology in the history of the world … and self-regulation does not work,” Wiener said, touting his record of authoring the country’s first AI safety bill for the state of California.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener’s first attempt at an AI safety bill included an AI “kill-switch” and other safeguards; however, that bill was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12100624/newsom-orders-california-agencies-to-develop-new-ai-safety-plans-after-rejecting-tougher-law\">vetoed\u003c/a> by Gov. Gavin Newsom. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener has said that it should be up to individual communities whether or not to ban data centers. Chan, meanwhile, argued for a moratorium on data centers to “have a moment to regulate artificial intelligence.” \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She called out her opponent for counting several major tech leaders among his supporters. “Can we trust politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? The answer is no, we cannot. We have to make sure that workers and unions are actually at the table to regulate this AI technology,” Chan said.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>She called out her opponent for counting several major tech leaders among his supporters. “Can we trust politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? The answer is no, we cannot. We have to make sure that workers and unions are actually at the table to regulate this AI technology,” Chan said.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener fired back that plenty of tech industry leaders tried to stop his AI bill and he pushed it through nonetheless. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I do battle with some of the biggest and wealthiest corporations in the history of the planet,” he said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Another tense moment around AI came when the candidates were asked about a recent sexual assault allegation in local San Francisco politics. Prominent local business owner \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102333/new-allegations-surface-against-san-francisco-supervisor-candidate-manny-yekutiel\">Manny Yekutiel dropped his bid\u003c/a> to become the next District 8 supervisor just hours before the debate after being accused by multiple people of sexual assault.\u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Another tense moment around AI came when the candidates were asked about a recent sexual assault allegation in local San Francisco politics. Prominent local business owner \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102333/new-allegations-surface-against-san-francisco-supervisor-candidate-manny-yekutiel\">Manny Yekutiel dropped his bid\u003c/a> to become the next District 8 supervisor just hours before the debate after being accused by multiple people of sexual assault.\u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Both Chan and Wiener urged Yekutiel to exit the race and said more work needs to be done to listen to and support survivors of assault and harassment. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan pointed out that she herself had to fight against racism and sexism in the political arena recently when Wiener’s team released an AI chatbot mimicking Chan, “mocking me, putting words in my mouth and impersonating me,” she said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener attempted to diffuse the situation, turning to Chan and apologizing directly to her about the AI chatbot, which his team took down following public criticism elevated by Pelosi, who has endorsed Chan. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It was a terrible mistake, which is why we took it down,” Wiener said. “I take full responsibility for that.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan honed in on her background during the debate, sharing how she was born in Hong Kong before moving to Taiwan and later immigrating to San Francisco at age 13, growing up in Chinatown before building a career in public service. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Chan honed in on her background during the debate, sharing how she was born in Hong Kong before moving to Taiwan and later immigrating to San Francisco at age 13, growing up in Chinatown before building a career in public service. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>She also underscored that she is a working mom and has garnered wide support from unions.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener, who is openly gay and previously served as a San Francisco supervisor, has backing from the state and local Democratic Party, as well as some well-heeled tech leaders.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>He’s so far outraised his opponent, but Chan has built up her war chest with the help of Pelosi’s fundraising machine and support from Saikait Chakrabarti, a wealthy former tech engineer whom she defeated in the June primary. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>He’s so far outraised his opponent, but Chan has built up her war chest with the help of Pelosi’s fundraising machine and support from Saikait Chakrabarti, a wealthy former tech engineer whom she defeated in the June primary. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Both candidates were given the opportunity to ask each other a question at Thursday’s debate, with Wiener honing in on Chan’s reputation for blocking housing, like a proposed 495-unit building at 469 Stevenson St., and that she voted against Mayor Daniel Lurie’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065204/everything-you-need-to-know-about-san-franciscos-family-zoning-plan\">rezoning plan\u003c/a> at a time when San Francisco is facing a housing crisis. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>Both candidates were given the opportunity to ask each other a question at Thursday’s debate, with Wiener honing in on Chan’s reputation for blocking housing, like a proposed 495-unit building at 469 Stevenson St., and that she voted against Mayor Daniel Lurie’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065204/everything-you-need-to-know-about-san-franciscos-family-zoning-plan\">rezoning plan\u003c/a> at a time when San Francisco is facing a housing crisis. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan said those decisions were made based on listening to constituents in the surrounding areas, and that in Congress she would push for more public housing and assistance for renters.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-3-scaled-e1790958264709.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102556\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan during her debate with state Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle.\u003ccite class=\"wp-inline-image-credit\"> (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“We can build homes because we need to build homes, but we also need to protect our tenants and small businesses,” she said. “It’s about serving the community and … sometimes that’s not a winner-takes-all approach.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener’s cultivated a reputation in Sacramento for passing legislation to spur more housing development. But Chan took swings at his support from tech- and real estate-aligned groups, implying that she is the candidate who will stand up to billionaires. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Wiener recently opposed two wealth taxes, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085528/san-francisco-props-c-d-trailing\">Proposition D in San Francisco\u003c/a>, which he said would disincentivize business at a time when the city’s economy is still recovering, and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099825/california-billionaires-tax-has-a-slim-lead-in-new-poll-but-still-a-lot-of-work-to-do\">Proposition 40 in California\u003c/a>, saying that the one-time tax on the November ballot doesn’t offer a sustainable solution to funding healthcare. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Instead, Wiener said he supports Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s ultramillionaire tax. “I do work for the people, and that’s why I’m endorsed by the Sierra Club and Dolores Huerta,” Wiener said. “I support reversing the tax cuts by (Donald) Trump and (George) Bush.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>On foreign policy, both candidates said they would support sending defensive arms to Ukraine as well as Taiwan, if China were to invade the island. They also both stressed that diplomacy and humanitarian aid should be the priority. \u003c/p>\n",
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"\n\u003cp>On foreign policy, both candidates said they would support sending defensive arms to Ukraine as well as Taiwan, if China were to invade the island. They also both stressed that diplomacy and humanitarian aid should be the priority. \u003c/p>\n"
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“I don’t want U.S. troops to be in a war with China,” Wiener said. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan said the U.S. should not frame AI regulation around a race with China over who can develop the technology faster but around protecting humanity. While Wiener intimated that she had never worked on AI regulation, she fired back that she’s worked on local laws to stop landlords from using AI to increase rents. \u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Nancy Pelosi is retiring after representing the city in Washington for nearly 40 years, and now Scott Wiener and Connie Chan, both Democrats, are facing off to replace her.",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\n\u003cp>As warnings of an artificial intelligence-driven doomsday loom, candidates looking to represent the home of the AI boom in Congress are pitching San Francisco voters on their plan to prevent disaster.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Ideas like data center moratoriums and AI kill-switches have shifted from niche topics to key questions for voters, a fact made clear at a \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102537/connie-chan-scott-wiener-debate-watch-live\">congressional debate on Thursday night\u003c/a> moderated by KQED’s Marisa Lagos and Scott Shafer, along with Joe Garofoli of the San Francisco Chronicle. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Nancy Pelosi is retiring after representing the city in Congress for nearly 40 years, and the hotly contested race has come down to two Democrats: state Sen. \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/scott-wiener\">Scott Wiener\u003c/a> and San Francisco Supervisor \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/connie-chan\">Connie Chan\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>While both support \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102152/experts-urge-federal-lawmakers-to-regulate-ai-will-anyone-heed-their-alarm\">regulating AI\u003c/a> in some fashion, Chan and Wiener had diverging approaches when it came to the best way to move forward as the technology advances quickly. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“AI is arguably the most powerful technology in the history of the world … and self-regulation does not work,” Wiener said, touting his record of authoring the country’s first AI safety bill for the state of California.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\u003cdiv class=\"wp-block-image\">\n\u003cfigure class=\"aligncenter size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-1-copy-2-scaled-e1790958307792.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102554\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">State Sen. Scott Wiener during a debate with San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener’s first attempt at an AI safety bill included an AI “kill-switch” and other safeguards; however, that bill was \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12100624/newsom-orders-california-agencies-to-develop-new-ai-safety-plans-after-rejecting-tougher-law\">vetoed\u003c/a> by Gov. Gavin Newsom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener has said that it should be up to individual communities whether or not to ban data centers. Chan, meanwhile, argued for a moratorium on data centers to “have a moment to regulate artificial intelligence.” \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She called out her opponent for counting several major tech leaders among his supporters. “Can we trust politicians who are bankrolled by the AI industry? The answer is no, we cannot. We have to make sure that workers and unions are actually at the table to regulate this AI technology,” Chan said.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener fired back that plenty of tech industry leaders tried to stop his AI bill and he pushed it through nonetheless. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I do battle with some of the biggest and wealthiest corporations in the history of the planet,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Another tense moment around AI came when the candidates were asked about a recent sexual assault allegation in local San Francisco politics. Prominent local business owner \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12102333/new-allegations-surface-against-san-francisco-supervisor-candidate-manny-yekutiel\">Manny Yekutiel dropped his bid\u003c/a> to become the next District 8 supervisor just hours before the debate after being accused by multiple people of sexual assault.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both Chan and Wiener urged Yekutiel to exit the race and said more work needs to be done to listen to and support survivors of assault and harassment. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan pointed out that she herself had to fight against racism and sexism in the political arena recently when Wiener’s team released an AI chatbot mimicking Chan, “mocking me, putting words in my mouth and impersonating me,” she said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener attempted to diffuse the situation, turning to Chan and apologizing directly to her about the AI chatbot, which his team took down following public criticism elevated by Pelosi, who has endorsed Chan. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was a terrible mistake, which is why we took it down,” Wiener said. “I take full responsibility for that.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan honed in on her background during the debate, sharing how she was born in Hong Kong before moving to Taiwan and later immigrating to San Francisco at age 13, growing up in Chinatown before building a career in public service. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>She also underscored that she is a working mom and has garnered wide support from unions.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener, who is openly gay and previously served as a San Francisco supervisor, has backing from the state and local Democratic Party, as well as some well-heeled tech leaders.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>He’s so far outraised his opponent, but Chan has built up her war chest with the help of Pelosi’s fundraising machine and support from Saikait Chakrabarti, a wealthy former tech engineer whom she defeated in the June primary. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Both candidates were given the opportunity to ask each other a question at Thursday’s debate, with Wiener honing in on Chan’s reputation for blocking housing, like a proposed 495-unit building at 469 Stevenson St., and that she voted against Mayor Daniel Lurie’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12065204/everything-you-need-to-know-about-san-franciscos-family-zoning-plan\">rezoning plan\u003c/a> at a time when San Francisco is facing a housing crisis. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan said those decisions were made based on listening to constituents in the surrounding areas, and that in Congress she would push for more public housing and assistance for renters.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/10/kqed-debate-3-scaled-e1790958264709.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12102556\"/>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan during her debate with state Sen. Scott Wiener at KQED in San Francisco on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. The two Democrats are running for California’s 11th District, a seat Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi is leaving. The debate was co-hosted by KQED and the San Francisco Chronicle. (Santiago Mejia/S.F. Chronicle/Pool)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We can build homes because we need to build homes, but we also need to protect our tenants and small businesses,” she said. “It’s about serving the community and … sometimes that’s not a winner-takes-all approach.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener’s cultivated a reputation in Sacramento for passing legislation to spur more housing development. But Chan took swings at his support from tech- and real estate-aligned groups, implying that she is the candidate who will stand up to billionaires. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener recently opposed two wealth taxes, \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085528/san-francisco-props-c-d-trailing\">Proposition D in San Francisco\u003c/a>, which he said would disincentivize business at a time when the city’s economy is still recovering, and \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12099825/california-billionaires-tax-has-a-slim-lead-in-new-poll-but-still-a-lot-of-work-to-do\">Proposition 40 in California\u003c/a>, saying that the one-time tax on the November ballot doesn’t offer a sustainable solution to funding healthcare. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Instead, Wiener said he supports Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s ultramillionaire tax. “I do work for the people, and that’s why I’m endorsed by the Sierra Club and Dolores Huerta,” Wiener said. “I support reversing the tax cuts by (Donald) Trump and (George) Bush.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On foreign policy, both candidates said they would support sending defensive arms to Ukraine as well as Taiwan, if China were to invade the island. They also both stressed that diplomacy and humanitarian aid should be the priority. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“I don’t want U.S. troops to be in a war with China,” Wiener said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>On China, Wiener also stressed that it’s in both the U.S. and China’s best interest to create guardrails around AI technology. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We do not need some mega arms race where we’re like, who’s going to be the first to potentially melt down the world,” Wiener said. He slammed Trump for eroding the relationship between the U.S. and longtime allies and stressed that in the age of AI, members of Congress need to work together to pass regulations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“We need leadership in this country that will actually work with other countries,” he said. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan said the U.S. should not frame AI regulation around a race with China over who can develop the technology faster but around protecting humanity. While Wiener intimated that she had never worked on AI regulation, she fired back that she’s worked on local laws to stop landlords from using AI to increase rents. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“America can be a leader of innovation without sacrificing safety and without sacrificing our workforce,” Chan said. “We need to demand human oversight, not just when something catastrophic happens.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "Watch Live: Connie Chan, Scott Wiener Debate for SF Congressional Seat",
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"content": "\n\u003cp>San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan and state Sen. Scott Wiener meet live onstage Thursday night at KQED for a critical debate, just days before ballots start arriving in the mail for the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/voterguide\">November election\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The two Democrats, both steeped in San Francisco politics, are running for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/voterguide/sanfrancisco/congress-11th-district\">the House seat\u003c/a> held for nearly four decades by Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi — marking the first time in years that the race has been truly competitive. The winner will be a voice for San Francisco in Washington on issues such as foreign policy, taxation and federal regulation.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Co-hosted by KQED’s Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos and \u003cem>The San Francisco Chronicle\u003c/em>’s Joe Garofoli, the debate is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be livestreamed on the \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igBVJ_1dIdY\">KQED Live YouTube page\u003c/a>. It will explore issues facing the city, such as affordability, tech and the economy, immigration, foreign conflicts and the role of San Francisco in national politics.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>In addition to the livestream, the debate will be recorded for later broadcast on radio at KQED 88.5FM on Friday at 8 p.m. and on television on KQED 9 on Oct. 9 at 8 p.m., as well as for podcast feeds as a special episode of KQED’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/podcasts/politicalbreakdown\">Political Breakdown\u003c/a> dropping Saturday morning.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Read more about Chan, Wiener and the race between them at KQED’s Voter Guide \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/voterguide/sanfrancisco/congress-11th-district\">here\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The two Democrats, both steeped in San Francisco politics, are running for \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/voterguide/sanfrancisco/congress-11th-district\">the House seat\u003c/a> held for nearly four decades by Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi — marking the first time in years that the race has been truly competitive. The winner will be a voice for San Francisco in Washington on issues such as foreign policy, taxation and federal regulation.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In addition to the livestream, the debate will be recorded for later broadcast on radio at KQED 88.5FM on Friday at 8 p.m. and on television on KQED 9 on Oct. 9 at 8 p.m., as well as for podcast feeds as a special episode of KQED’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/podcasts/politicalbreakdown\">Political Breakdown\u003c/a> dropping Saturday morning.\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cp>Former \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12006391/barbara-boxer-is-retired-but-still-deeply-engaged-in-politics\">U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer\u003c/a> is endorsing Connie Chan in the race to represent San Francisco in Congress. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The endorsement adds another legendary female politician to Chan’s list of supporters, which also includes \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084132/nancy-pelosi-endorses-san-francisco-supervisor-connie-chan-for-congress\">House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a>, whose upcoming \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062796/nancy-pelosi-leaves-congress-after-38-years-defining-generations-of-democratic-power\">retirement\u003c/a> has opened one of the most competitive elections for San Francisco’s seat in Congress in decades. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11855572\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1832x1374.jpg 1832w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1376x1032.jpg 1376w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1044x783.jpg 1044w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-632x474.jpg 632w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-536x402.jpg 536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, speaks during a press conference calling for the creation of an independent military justice system to deal with sexual harassment and assault in the military, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 6, 2014. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan meanwhile has found a powerful ally in Pelosi, who has thrown her fundraising muscle and political expertise behind her campaign. Recently, Pelosi \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/teampelosi/status/2085488807152136474?s=46\">sharply criticized\u003c/a> one of Wiener’s campaign moves to create an AI-powered chatbot mimicking Chan. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener’s team later took down the AI chatbot, acknowledging that it “clearly missed the mark.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan said in a statement that she was “deeply grateful” for Boxer’s support. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>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. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>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.\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Chan said in a statement that she was “deeply grateful” for Boxer’s support. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Chan has also found a powerful ally in Nancy Pelosi, whose retirement has opened up the first competitive race for the city’s House seat in decades.",
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"title": "Former Sen. Barbara Boxer Endorses San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan for Congress | KQED",
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"headline": "Former Sen. Barbara Boxer Endorses San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan for Congress",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Former \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12006391/barbara-boxer-is-retired-but-still-deeply-engaged-in-politics\">U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer\u003c/a> is endorsing Connie Chan in the race to represent San Francisco in Congress. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The endorsement adds another legendary female politician to Chan’s list of supporters, which also includes \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12084132/nancy-pelosi-endorses-san-francisco-supervisor-connie-chan-for-congress\">House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi\u003c/a>, whose upcoming \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12062796/nancy-pelosi-leaves-congress-after-38-years-defining-generations-of-democratic-power\">retirement\u003c/a> has opened one of the most competitive elections for San Francisco’s seat in Congress in decades. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1440\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11855572\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1832x1374.jpg 1832w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1376x1032.jpg 1376w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-1044x783.jpg 1044w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-632x474.jpg 632w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2021/01/8749_transform-536x402.jpg 536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, speaks during a press conference calling for the creation of an independent military justice system to deal with sexual harassment and assault in the military, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 6, 2014. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan meanwhile has found a powerful ally in Pelosi, who has thrown her fundraising muscle and political expertise behind her campaign. Recently, Pelosi \u003ca href=\"https://x.com/teampelosi/status/2085488807152136474?s=46\">sharply criticized\u003c/a> one of Wiener’s campaign moves to create an AI-powered chatbot mimicking Chan. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Wiener’s team later took down the AI chatbot, acknowledging that it “clearly missed the mark.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>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.\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Chan said in a statement that she was “deeply grateful” for Boxer’s support. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“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.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"slug": "proposal-would-allow-san-francisco-small-business-owners-to-unionize",
"title": "Proposal Would Allow San Francisco Small Business Owners to Unionize",
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"headTitle": "Proposal Would Allow San Francisco Small Business Owners to Unionize | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>As small businesses in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> face skyrocketing rents and ongoing economic troubles stemming from the pandemic, the city is looking to make it easier for owners and workers alike to keep doors open. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan on Friday unveiled a package aimed at supporting small business owners and their workers through two pieces of legislation. The first would enable small businesses to unionize in order to collectively negotiate rent with commercial landlords. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For many small businesses, San Francisco’s astronomically high rent is one of the largest operating expenses. But the city’s rent control policies do not cover commercial properties, making it difficult to stay in business amid the current ballooning real estate market, largely driven by the artificial intelligence boom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Small businesses often face the risk of displacement, especially when their commercial rent goes up,” Chan said during a press conference on Friday in Japantown, which is home to a number of mom-and-pop shops. “We want our small businesses to stay in our corridors, because that really is the backbone of our local economy.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12068072\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Pedestrians cross the street in front of a vacant to vibrant pop-up Dandelion Chocolate on Powell Street in San Francisco on Dec. 17, 2025. While retail vacancy in Union Square has improved after several years of store closures, San Francisco Center Mall is still struggling despite millions of dollars raised for Mayor Lurie’s Downtown Development Corporation, free lease programs for small businesses, and other Hail Marys the city is throwing at its primary commercial district. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposal would enable small business owners to collectively negotiate rents with their landlords and direct public resources like legal aid to commercial tenants’ unions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In some commercial corridors, small businesses already work together to negotiate rents, but Chan’s proposal would codify that process by requiring property owners to recognize commercial tenants unions where members share the same landlords during lease negotiations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jon Osaki said that the model has shown success in Japantown, where several small businesses collectively bargained rent prices down with property owners during the pandemic when business was extremely slow. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was so disheartening in the pandemic that many of our small businesses were threatened with forced evictions, even though they were in a situation where they could not operate,” Osaki said. “Small businesses have been the lifeblood of our community.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Christin Evans, who owns a bookstore and cocktail bar in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, said many small businesses she hears from have had their leases shift to month-to-month as landlords see opportunities to raise the rent during the current economic boom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The majority of small businesses are essentially subject to the whims of building ownership,” said Evans, who co-founded the progressive advocacy group Small Business Forward. “It used to be that most small businesses were negotiating with mom-and-pop landlords. That’s no longer the case.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The second proposal, called the Workers’ Opportunity to Purchase Act, would codify processes for employees to purchase the business they work at if an owner decides to sell. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The idea is meant to incentivize business owners to prepare a succession plan and sell to workers who already know the business inside and out. That would include a right of first offer to workers, giving them time to explore forming a cooperative or a purchase offer, as well as a right of first refusal, requiring owners to notify workers before a sale or third-party bid so workers have an opportunity to counter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Benjy Caplan, who works at Green Apple Books, said that would help employees like him who want to take over the business one day. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our hope is that when it comes time for them to have a succession plan, it includes us,” said Caplan, who is a union member with UFCW Local 5. “It’s hard and scary these days, and these two pieces of legislation I think are really going to make it feel a lot more hopeful for workers and small business owners.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both pieces of legislation will be introduced to the Board of Supervisors in September.\u003c/p>\n\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12068072\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 992px) min(100vw, 1536px), (min-width: 768px) min(100vw, 1280px), min(100vw, 1020px)\" />\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Pedestrians cross the street in front of a vacant to vibrant pop-up Dandelion Chocolate on Powell Street in San Francisco on Dec. 17, 2025. While retail vacancy in Union Square has improved after several years of store closures, San Francisco Center Mall is still struggling despite millions of dollars raised for Mayor Lurie’s Downtown Development Corporation, free lease programs for small businesses, and other Hail Marys the city is throwing at its primary commercial district.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>In some commercial corridors, small businesses already work together to negotiate rents, but Chan’s proposal would codify that process by requiring property owners to recognize commercial tenants unions where members share the same landlords during lease negotiations. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Jon Osaki said that the model has shown success in Japantown, where several small businesses collectively bargained rent prices down with property owners during the pandemic when business was extremely slow. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“It was so disheartening in the pandemic that many of our small businesses were threatened with forced evictions, even though they were in a situation where they could not operate,” Osaki said. “Small businesses have been the lifeblood of our community.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Christin Evans, who owns a bookstore and cocktail bar in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, said many small businesses she hears from have had their leases shift to month-to-month as landlords see opportunities to raise the rent during the current economic boom. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“The majority of small businesses are essentially subject to the whims of building ownership,” said Evans, who co-founded the progressive advocacy group Small Business Forward. “It used to be that most small businesses were negotiating with mom-and-pop landlords. That’s no longer the case.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The second proposal, called the Workers’ Opportunity to Purchase Act, would codify processes for employees to purchase the business they work at if an owner decides to sell. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>The idea is meant to incentivize business owners to prepare a succession plan and sell to workers who already know the business inside and out. That would include a right of first offer to workers, giving them time to explore forming a cooperative or a purchase offer, as well as a right of first refusal, requiring owners to notify workers before a sale or third-party bid so workers have an opportunity to counter. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Benjy Caplan, who works at Green Apple Books, said that would help employees like him who want to take over the business one day. \u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>“Our hope is that when it comes time for them to have a succession plan, it includes us,” said Caplan, who is a union member with UFCW Local 5. “It’s hard and scary these days, and these two pieces of legislation I think are really going to make it feel a lot more hopeful for workers and small business owners.”\u003c/p>\n",
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"innerHTML": "\n\u003cp>Both pieces of legislation will be introduced to the Board of Supervisors in September.\u003c/p>\n",
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"excerpt": "Supporters say the plan would help give small business owners a break as rent prices skyrocket in San Francisco. ",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>As small businesses in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/san-francisco\">San Francisco\u003c/a> face skyrocketing rents and ongoing economic troubles stemming from the pandemic, the city is looking to make it easier for owners and workers alike to keep doors open. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan on Friday unveiled a package aimed at supporting small business owners and their workers through two pieces of legislation. The first would enable small businesses to unionize in order to collectively negotiate rent with commercial landlords. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>For many small businesses, San Francisco’s astronomically high rent is one of the largest operating expenses. But the city’s rent control policies do not cover commercial properties, making it difficult to stay in business amid the current ballooning real estate market, largely driven by the artificial intelligence boom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Small businesses often face the risk of displacement, especially when their commercial rent goes up,” Chan said during a press conference on Friday in Japantown, which is home to a number of mom-and-pop shops. “We want our small businesses to stay in our corridors, because that really is the backbone of our local economy.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12068072\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/12/251217-sfstateofdowntown00005seqn_TV_qed-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Pedestrians cross the street in front of a vacant to vibrant pop-up Dandelion Chocolate on Powell Street in San Francisco on Dec. 17, 2025. While retail vacancy in Union Square has improved after several years of store closures, San Francisco Center Mall is still struggling despite millions of dollars raised for Mayor Lurie’s Downtown Development Corporation, free lease programs for small businesses, and other Hail Marys the city is throwing at its primary commercial district. (Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The proposal would enable small business owners to collectively negotiate rents with their landlords and direct public resources like legal aid to commercial tenants’ unions. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In some commercial corridors, small businesses already work together to negotiate rents, but Chan’s proposal would codify that process by requiring property owners to recognize commercial tenants unions where members share the same landlords during lease negotiations. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Jon Osaki said that the model has shown success in Japantown, where several small businesses collectively bargained rent prices down with property owners during the pandemic when business was extremely slow. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“It was so disheartening in the pandemic that many of our small businesses were threatened with forced evictions, even though they were in a situation where they could not operate,” Osaki said. “Small businesses have been the lifeblood of our community.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Christin Evans, who owns a bookstore and cocktail bar in the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, said many small businesses she hears from have had their leases shift to month-to-month as landlords see opportunities to raise the rent during the current economic boom. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“The majority of small businesses are essentially subject to the whims of building ownership,” said Evans, who co-founded the progressive advocacy group Small Business Forward. “It used to be that most small businesses were negotiating with mom-and-pop landlords. That’s no longer the case.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The second proposal, called the Workers’ Opportunity to Purchase Act, would codify processes for employees to purchase the business they work at if an owner decides to sell. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>The idea is meant to incentivize business owners to prepare a succession plan and sell to workers who already know the business inside and out. That would include a right of first offer to workers, giving them time to explore forming a cooperative or a purchase offer, as well as a right of first refusal, requiring owners to notify workers before a sale or third-party bid so workers have an opportunity to counter. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>Benjy Caplan, who works at Green Apple Books, said that would help employees like him who want to take over the business one day. \u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>“Our hope is that when it comes time for them to have a succession plan, it includes us,” said Caplan, who is a union member with UFCW Local 5. “It’s hard and scary these days, and these two pieces of legislation I think are really going to make it feel a lot more hopeful for workers and small business owners.”\u003c/p>\n\n\n\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both pieces of legislation will be introduced to the Board of Supervisors in September.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"title": "San Francisco Finalizes $17 Billion Budget, Restores Millions in Proposed Cuts",
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"headTitle": "San Francisco Finalizes $17 Billion Budget, Restores Millions in Proposed Cuts | KQED",
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"content": "\u003cp>San Francisco supervisors gave their stamp of approval on the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085729/with-layoffs-ahead-san-francisco-mayor-lurie-unveils-17-billion-city-budget\">$16.9 billion budget\u003c/a> early Thursday evening, after a relatively quick final round of negotiations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials said the agreement moves the city toward closing its $600 million deficit, reverses layoffs and restores $28 million for public services for immigrants, LGBTQ+ residents, people with mental health and substance use issues, and homelessness programs, among other items previously on the chopping block.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuts from the federal government to food and healthcare assistance programs have worsened the city’s financial shortfalls. However, the final budget passed this week also includes over $1 billion in reserve to protect against further cuts from the Trump administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Last summer, just as our city was getting back on track, the federal government cut hundreds of millions of dollars from healthcare and food assistance that San Franciscans rely on,” Mayor Daniel Lurie said in a statement. “Facing those cuts and threats of more, we chose to strengthen the social safety net and invest in our LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The deal came after weeks of protests from advocates, city union members, and nonprofits all aimed at stopping reductions to government services and proposed cuts to nonprofits that contract with the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11968734\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11968734\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut.jpg\" alt='A person walks toward a building labeled \"Creative Arts\" on a campus with trees, sidewalks and the street in view.' width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A student walks through the City College of San Francisco community college campus in San Francisco on Aug. 22, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The funding restored at the final hour also continues support for Free City College, funding for HIV prevention work and the California Academy of Sciences.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lurie’s initial budget proposal had included around 500 layoffs. Earlier this year, 127 workers received pink slips, and others were notified about changes to their positions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the final add-back, the mayor and supervisors agreed to reverse layoffs for workers at the 311 call center, Laguna Honda Hospital, and the Human Services Agency, according to the office of Supervisor Connie Chan, who chairs the budget committee.[aside postID=news_12088662 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/260624-ShipyardCleanupRally-10-BL-KQED.jpg']“This budget represents a remarkable victory for every single San Francisco resident,” said Anya Worley-Ziegmann, coordinator for the San Francisco People’s Budget Coalition, a group representing unions, social services advocates and other community groups protesting the proposed cuts. “It shows that public pressure works. Showing up works.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The plan is set to go before the full Board of Supervisors on July 21. Few changes are expected for the final budget vote next month following Thursday’s agreement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Over the past 4 fiscal years, my work as budget chair has been centered on reducing wasteful spending, creating guardrails against corruption, saving for the future by putting reasonable dollars on reserve, reversing cuts for the most vulnerable San Franciscans and saving essential city jobs and services,” Chan, who has served as budget chair since 2023, said in a statement. This is her final budget as chair. “We have been successful with this work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mayor and advocates said there is still much work to do to get the city on a stronger financial footing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12086413\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12086413\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-2278646743-scaled-e1782502896455.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mayor Daniel Lurie during a news conference on his budget proposal in San Francisco on June 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a statement, Lurie said the city must still focus on strengthening Muni and affordable public transportation “to keep our recovery moving forward.” Throughout the budget cycle, the mayor has emphasized that difficult decisions and cuts are necessary in order for the city to stop spending money that it doesn’t have.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Others say the solution should not be to trim down essential programs and cut jobs, but instead to increase city revenue through taxes and other measures. Worley-Ziegmann pointed out that not all of the proposed cuts were restored, and next year’s fiscal budget is still projected to be a deficit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“San Francisco is one of the wealthiest cities in the wealthiest country in the world, and with the AI boom, it’s only getting richer,” Worley-Ziegmann said. “We need to be talking about IPO taxes, wealth taxes, mansion taxes and every policy tool available to close future deficits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>San Francisco supervisors gave their stamp of approval on the city’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12085729/with-layoffs-ahead-san-francisco-mayor-lurie-unveils-17-billion-city-budget\">$16.9 billion budget\u003c/a> early Thursday evening, after a relatively quick final round of negotiations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Officials said the agreement moves the city toward closing its $600 million deficit, reverses layoffs and restores $28 million for public services for immigrants, LGBTQ+ residents, people with mental health and substance use issues, and homelessness programs, among other items previously on the chopping block.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cuts from the federal government to food and healthcare assistance programs have worsened the city’s financial shortfalls. However, the final budget passed this week also includes over $1 billion in reserve to protect against further cuts from the Trump administration.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Last summer, just as our city was getting back on track, the federal government cut hundreds of millions of dollars from healthcare and food assistance that San Franciscans rely on,” Mayor Daniel Lurie said in a statement. “Facing those cuts and threats of more, we chose to strengthen the social safety net and invest in our LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The deal came after weeks of protests from advocates, city union members, and nonprofits all aimed at stopping reductions to government services and proposed cuts to nonprofits that contract with the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_11968734\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11968734\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut.jpg\" alt='A person walks toward a building labeled \"Creative Arts\" on a campus with trees, sidewalks and the street in view.' width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2023/11/230822-CCSFCampus-01-BL-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A student walks through the City College of San Francisco community college campus in San Francisco on Aug. 22, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The funding restored at the final hour also continues support for Free City College, funding for HIV prevention work and the California Academy of Sciences.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Lurie’s initial budget proposal had included around 500 layoffs. Earlier this year, 127 workers received pink slips, and others were notified about changes to their positions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the final add-back, the mayor and supervisors agreed to reverse layoffs for workers at the 311 call center, Laguna Honda Hospital, and the Human Services Agency, according to the office of Supervisor Connie Chan, who chairs the budget committee.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
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"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>“This budget represents a remarkable victory for every single San Francisco resident,” said Anya Worley-Ziegmann, coordinator for the San Francisco People’s Budget Coalition, a group representing unions, social services advocates and other community groups protesting the proposed cuts. “It shows that public pressure works. Showing up works.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The plan is set to go before the full Board of Supervisors on July 21. Few changes are expected for the final budget vote next month following Thursday’s agreement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Over the past 4 fiscal years, my work as budget chair has been centered on reducing wasteful spending, creating guardrails against corruption, saving for the future by putting reasonable dollars on reserve, reversing cuts for the most vulnerable San Franciscans and saving essential city jobs and services,” Chan, who has served as budget chair since 2023, said in a statement. This is her final budget as chair. “We have been successful with this work.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mayor and advocates said there is still much work to do to get the city on a stronger financial footing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12086413\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12086413\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2026/06/GettyImages-2278646743-scaled-e1782502896455.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mayor Daniel Lurie during a news conference on his budget proposal in San Francisco on June 1, 2026. \u003ccite>(Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In a statement, Lurie said the city must still focus on strengthening Muni and affordable public transportation “to keep our recovery moving forward.” Throughout the budget cycle, the mayor has emphasized that difficult decisions and cuts are necessary in order for the city to stop spending money that it doesn’t have.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Others say the solution should not be to trim down essential programs and cut jobs, but instead to increase city revenue through taxes and other measures. Worley-Ziegmann pointed out that not all of the proposed cuts were restored, and next year’s fiscal budget is still projected to be a deficit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“San Francisco is one of the wealthiest cities in the wealthiest country in the world, and with the AI boom, it’s only getting richer,” Worley-Ziegmann said. “We need to be talking about IPO taxes, wealth taxes, mansion taxes and every policy tool available to close future deficits.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
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"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
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"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
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"marketplace": {
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"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
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"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
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},
"mindshift": {
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"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
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"order": 12
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"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
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"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
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"planet-money": {
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"politicalbreakdown": {
"id": "politicalbreakdown",
"title": "Political Breakdown",
"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
"airtime": "THU 6:30pm-7pm",
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"possible": {
"id": "possible",
"title": "Possible",
"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Possible-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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"pri-the-world": {
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"title": "PRI's The World: Latest Edition",
"info": "Each weekday, host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories in an hour of radio that reminds us just how small our planet really is.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-World-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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},
"radiolab": {
"id": "radiolab",
"title": "Radiolab",
"info": "A two-time Peabody Award-winner, Radiolab is an investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea. In the Radiolab world, information sounds like music and science and culture collide. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, the show is designed for listeners who demand skepticism, but appreciate wonder. WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics Radio, Death, Sex & Money, On the Media and many more.",
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},
"reveal": {
"id": "reveal",
"title": "Reveal",
"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
"airtime": "SAT 4pm-5pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/reveal300px.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/",
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"rss": "http://feeds.revealradio.org/revealpodcast"
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},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
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"source": "kqed",
"order": 16
},
"link": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
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},
"science-friday": {
"id": "science-friday",
"title": "Science Friday",
"info": "Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.",
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"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Science-Friday-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
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},
"snap-judgment": {
"id": "snap-judgment",
"title": "Snap Judgment",
"tagline": "Real stories with killer beats",
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