Why does this race matter?
San Franciscans will vote for a new representative in Congress as Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi retires from the seat she’s held for nearly four decades. It’s the first time the race has been truly competitive in years, with voters deciding between two Democrats steeped in San Francisco politics. The winner will be a voice for San Francisco in Washington on issues such as foreign policy, taxation and federal regulation.
What does a U.S. representative do?
Representatives are your local community’s voice in the U.S. House of Representatives. Members of Congress write and vote on bills, including the federal budget. The winner of this race will serve a two-year term.
Candidates
Connie ChanSupervisor, San Francisco Democrat
Scott WienerState senator Democrat
Positions on Key Issues
Candidate summaries are based on interviews with the candidates, questionnaires, statements made at debates and public events, and past news coverage.
Affordability is top of mind for many San Franciscans. What policies would you push for to drive down the cost of housing and living for residents?
Chan would push to repeal the Faircloth Amendment, a federal law banning net increases in public housing, and advocate for more housing tax credits, Section 8 vouchers and new financing for affordable housing. She would also seek tax deductions for renters and stronger tenant protections. “We must lower costs beyond housing by passing Medicare for All, capping childcare expenses, expanding the Child Tax Credit and stopping utility monopolies from passing excessive costs on to families,” she says.
Wiener says San Francisco’s affordability crisis is driven by a housing shortage and is focused on “cutting the red tape that makes building homes so difficult.” He is seeking to build 8 million homes at all income levels and reverse federal tax cuts to fund the effort. Along with stronger renter protections, he will “work to pass Medicare For All … enact paid family leave and a low-cost childcare program and expand public transportation.”
Do you support calls by some Democratic leaders for national tax reform to increase taxes on the wealthiest Americans? Why or why not?
Chan supports tax increases at the national level for Americans with fortunes over $50 million. “A billionaire should not pay a smaller share of their income in taxes than our teachers and nurses,” she said, adding that she supports a corporate minimum tax and closing offshore loopholes. “That revenue should fund affordable housing, universal childcare, public education and healthcare — not more tax breaks for corporations and billionaires.”
Wiener supports Elizabeth Warren’s Ultramillionaire Tax, which would apply a 2% tax on Americans with over $50 million and a 3% tax to those with a net worth above $1 billion. “A small group of oligarchs and corporations increasingly act with impunity while the rest of the country teeters on the brink of financial ruin,” he says. “At the same time, public services like schools, transit, childcare, housing and healthcare have been severely underfunded.”
San Francisco is at the center of the artificial intelligence boom. How do you think this technology should be regulated? And would you support a moratorium on data centers?
Chan supports a nationwide moratorium on data centers until there are stronger protections for ratepayers, grid reliability and the environment, and she wants AI companies to pay their infrastructure costs. She believes AI needs enforceable federal guardrails and wants tech company workers to have a voice in how the technology is deployed. “Creators must be compensated when their work trains models, and high-risk uses must require independent safety reviews, human oversight and accountability,” she says.
Wiener authored the nation’s first AI safety law. He supports increasing job safety and transparency standards and would seek to tax AI profits “so everyone benefits, not just the wealthy.” Wiener does not support a blanket moratorium on data centers, which he said could push the issue overseas and harm San Francisco-based jobs. “Communities should decide whether they want data centers,” he says. “We need strong energy and water protections, so bills don't increase.”
What committee(s) would you be most interested in working on in Congress and why?
Chan is most interested in the Budget, Appropriations and Education and Workforce committees. She has served as Board of Supervisors budget chair, a role in which she says she “balanced multibillion-dollar budgets, closed major deficits and protected essential services.” In Congress, she would seek to increase investments in affordable housing, healthcare, public education and childcare “and ensure workers have living wages, strong unions, safe workplaces and a voice in the technologies reshaping their jobs.”
Wiener says he is focused “not on committees, but rather making the case to San Franciscans that I’m their best choice as a representative.” In Congress, he wants to prioritize policy around housing, healthcare, transit and technology. He said he would be honored to serve on bodies like the Financial Services Committee, which oversees housing policy, the Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation and the Energy and Commerce Committee, which covers health and tech policy.
As the war in Iran continues, do you think that the U.S. should change its relationship with Israel? If so, how?
Chan believes that the U.S. should reshape its relationship to Israel. “The Israeli government is committing genocide in Gaza and violating the Leahy Law, and our relationship cannot continue as a blank check.” She says the U.S. should block all weapons transfers to Israel. “Congress must end this war, reassert constitutional authority over war powers and pursue diplomacy and regional peace — not allow a foreign government to decide when Americans go to war.”
Wiener does not support U.S. funding for the Israeli military or the sale of offensive arms, saying “the U.S. must not enable the destruction of Palestinian and Lebanese communities.” He believes Israel should have access to defensive systems, but at its own expense. He does not support funding the war in Iran, which is “illegal, immoral and a disaster,” he says. “Trump had no plan, and the Iranian regime is now stronger.”
Key Supporters
This list represents notable organizations and individuals who have taken a position on the ballot measure or candidate, or who are funding campaigns in support or opposition. This list is not exhaustive, and may be updated.
For Chan
- Barbara Boxer, former U.S. senator
- Nancy Pelosi, U.S. representative
- California Working Families Party
- San Francisco Labor Council
- San Francisco Women’s Political Committee
For Wiener
- Rob Bonta, California attorney general
- Dolores Huerta, labor leader
- California Democratic Party
- Equality California
- SF YIMBY