Candidate for District Supervisor Jane Kim. Photos by Luke Thomas.
By Luke Thomas
September 27, 2010
School Board President Jane Kim announced today her long-anticipated progressive endorsements in the race to succeed District 6 Supervisor Chris Daly.
Though not ranked, Kim has co-endorsed Glendon “Anna Conda” Hyde and James Keys in the IRV (Instant Runoff Voting) race.
“It is critical for candidates who share similar philosophies to work together in any ranked-choice election,” Kim said in a statement released to FCJ. “Campaigns are about far more than one candidate or personality—they are opportunities for our community to come together.”
“Today, I am very happy to announce my endorsement of Glendon ‘Anna Conda’ Hyde and James Keys. I have gotten to know Glendon during this campaign season, and truly admire his independence and positive message for change. I greatly respect his community organizing and the way he has inspired young people to get involved in the political process.
“James Keys is also a strong community advocate who has worked on affordable housing and mental health issues for many years. James has empowered the SRO community and lower-income residents of District 6 in a meaningful way.”
Of the leading progressive candidates in the ranked choice race, a list that includes Keys, Kim, Jim Meko and Debra Walker, Walker is so far the only candidate to not endorse a fellow progressive candidate. She was the only D6 candidate to receive the powerful San Francisco Democratic Party endorsement.
Keys has co-endorsed Kim and Walker. Meko has endorsed Keys (second) and Walker (third). Hyde has endorsed Kim (second) and Walker (third).
The Great Prop B Debate
Though not confirmed, word has it San Francisco Labor Council Executive Director Tim Paulson will represent the house of labor in a public debate tonight with Public Defender Jeff Adachi over the merits of a controversial pension and healthcare reform measure on the November ballot.
“Tonight’s debate is an important component of our democratic process and an opportunity for the voters of San Francisco to decide how their tax dollars are spent without the interference of special interest groups,” Adachi, who sponsored the ballot measure, said in a press release. “In this time of severe recession, Prop B will immediately inject millions of dollars into San Francisco’s funding stream. These deeply needed funds can be used towards protecting services, saving jobs and getting our City fiscally back on track to meet the needs of all San Franciscans. ”
Public Defender Jeff Adachi.
If passed by a simple majority of voters, Prop B would mandate city employees contribute between 9 and 10 percent of their annual salaries towards their pension retirement accounts. It would also double city employees’ health care insurance contributions, a provision that has caused uproar and vociferous opposition from labor groups.
According to Adachi, the measure is aimed at reining in unsustainable pension and healthcare costs projected to exceed $1 billion by 2016 and would save as much as $170 million in the first year, monies that could be used to prevent layoffs and cuts to important city services. The City faces a $700 million deficit in the next fiscal year due to the recession and subsequent decreases in revenues.
Tonight’s debate will be held at West Twin Peaks Council, 381 Magellan Avenue, at 8pm.
Pelosi AWOL from District, or too afraid of political foot in mouth disease?
Nancy Pelosi.
Speaker of the House and Congressional District 8 Representative Nancy Pelosi doesn’t spend enough time in the District she represents to debate any candidates vying to challenge her 23-year reign, according to reports.
Republican challenger John Dennis happened upon Pelosi last week at a Young Democrats fundraiser held in Washington, D.C. During the encounter, Dennis asked Pelosi if she received his formal invitation for a debate and re-iterated his invitation in person.
According to Dennis, Pelosi told him a debate would be unlikely because “she has little time to return to the District.”
“She owes the voters of San Francisco an explanation for why she has reversed her position on many key issues involving the two wars, renewing the Patriot Act,” Dennis said. “Most important, a debate would force her to defend economic policies which have done little to address the economic downturn and dismal jobs picture. She has presided over a $1.5 trillion deficit that will burden our children for decades.”
GOP challenger John Dennis.
The last time Pelosi debated anyone for the seat was in 1987 when she ran to succeed the late Sala Burton.
Mirkarimi Earns NCPA Public Power Champion Award
San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi was recognized Friday during an annual meeting of Northern California Power Agency members for his efforts in championing opposition to Proposition 16, a failed measure on the June ballot sponsored by PG&E that would have all but eliminated public energy competition from local communities.
Mirkarimi, you’ll recall, attended the NCPA’s previous annual meeting in September, 2009 to ring alarm bells and to champion grass roots opposition to the monopoly-protecting measure.
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi addresses NCPA members at its 2009 annual meeting.
Mirkarimi, a former Green turned Democrat, shared the “Public Power Champion Award” honor with former California Energy Commissioner John Geesman, a Republican.
Editor’s Note: Luke Thomas is a resident and voter in District 6. In the interest of transparency, he has provided photography services to the campaigns of Jane Kim, Jim Meko and Debra Walker.
Luke Thomas
Luke Thomas is a former software developer and computer consultant who proudly hails from London, England. In 2001, Thomas took a yearlong sabbatical to travel and develop a photographic portfolio. Upon his return to the US, Thomas studied photojournalism to pursue a career in journalism. In 2004, Thomas worked for several neighborhood newspapers in San Francisco before accepting a partnership agreement with the SanFranciscoSentinel.com, a news website formerly covering local, state and national politics. In September 2006, Thomas launched FogCityJournal.com. The BBC, CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox News, New York Times, Der Spiegel, San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Magazine, 7x7, San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco Bay Guardian and the San Francisco Weekly, among other publications and news outlets, have published his work. Thomas is a member of the Freelance Unit of the Pacific Media Workers Guild, TNG-CWA Local 39521 and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists.
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September 30, 2010 at 10:23 am
@Kay, look, Greg bought up the issue of district longevity as something the Walker campaign values and as a justification for not making down ballot endorsements for Jane Kim.
I’m just pointing out the irony of a D1 resident telling D6 residents that we should not vote for a candidate who moved to circuitously to D6 from D1.
The only “dig” I am taking at Debra is the same one I’m taking at Jane: it is irresponsible for each leading progressive candidate to not endorse the other downballot.
As I’ve explained, I’ve got respect for and problems with both candidacies, but the primacy of retaining progressive control over D6 trumps all other considerations. Both candidates need to suck it up and do what’s right for the district.
It is not like one more contradiction will sink anyone.
-marc
September 30, 2010 at 9:59 am
@Marc, Hene was asked to MC Debra’s kickoff because she is a great MC and can easily move the room. Period. I organized her kick-off and I very strongly stand by my choice. And I don’t live in the district either, if you want to address that. Please don’t start digging in a place where nothing will grow, it’s a fruitless effort, and you very well know that there are more important things to nit-pick at.
September 30, 2010 at 9:08 am
Greg,
Why didn’t Walker endorse Jim Meko? Wait, she did! Oh yeah, for months she gave him a big hug every time she saw him and said: “You’re my number two choice!”.
Debra’s a good lady who simply has too many IOU’s out in the Democratic political community. Kim is a snob who certainly won’t be accessible to the average Joe Blow. Meko’s the only logical first choice for me.
Go Giants!
h.
September 29, 2010 at 6:34 pm
And, Greg, who was the emcee for Debra’s campaign kickoff? Hene Kelly. Sweet person, but a west sider who was focusing more on the interests of the Democrat Party and Labor in the campaign than on D6 residents. It was quite interesting for me to see a resident of the Richmond going off on how a newcomer to District Six was not qualified to serve. Few who spoke there had roots in the district.
Since we’re talking about Debra’s coalition where political kinship networks tend to trump policy outcomes, let me state that I do not “hate” Hene Kelly, but am just using her as an example of hypocrisy that in effect neutralizes your defense of hypocrisy against the reality that progressives need to suck it up and get with the program.
No other district in the City would be subject to or stand for being viewed as a resource for all political factions, interests of district residents notwithstanding. Now why could that be?
-marc
September 29, 2010 at 1:53 pm
@Greg, I value district experience and longevity more than anyone else, but circumstances have worked out such that Debra’s long term residency will not matter if Sparks gets the seat.
Like Obama is realizing that he’s going to get his ass handed to him for carrying water for interests other than his base, so is Debra’s coalition realizing that they should have thought about district self determination when it came time to staff their nonprofits with commuters. Their protestations ring hollow.
District Six has traditionally been the proxy district for outsiders to wield influence over for the money it generates, like, what, a quarter of total city sales tax? Nonprofits, developers, downtown and their “arts districts” rule. Native voices are not welcome at the tables of power unless they’re ineffective.
Neither Debra nor Jane nor Meko differ on the fundamentals of this one.
-marc
September 29, 2010 at 6:47 am
To those folks who think Debra Walker should endorse Jane Kim as part of a strategy to ensure that a progressive gets elected, consider how it would look for her part.
One of Debra’s strongest arguments is that she’s lived and worked on behalf of the community for 25 years, which sets her apart from Kim and Sparks, who recently moved to the district.
Now from the standpoint of an individual progressive voter, it might make sense to vote for both Walker and Kim to ensure that a progressive keeps the seat. But don’t look for Walker to endorse Kim anytime soon. And she shouldn’t, because she’d look like a hypocrite. It would undermine a major part of her campaign strategy. The mods would have a field day with it -on the one hand she’d be saying that she wants people’s votes because she has a history of community activism in the district, and on the other hand she’d be telling people to vote for this person who just moved in to the district (and says that “D6 is the kind of district that you don’t have to live in very long to run for office in”), as a second choice! C’mon, that’s asking Debra to do something so stupid as to be suicidal.
As for the rest of the field, honestly none of the other progressive candidates have a prayer, and they all have negatives that may make endorsing them a net negative rather than a net positive.
September 28, 2010 at 4:59 pm
D9 ’08 was like D5 ’04 where downtown did not seriously contest the race which ended up as a race between progressives.
That said, Quezada is failing upwards.
-marc
September 28, 2010 at 1:10 pm
Here’s the interview with Campos on the importance of the SFBG endorsement in the D9 election:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7RUSPdyvo4
September 28, 2010 at 12:59 pm
@h, I did not go with a sure loser in District 9. Eric Quezada is a great guy who was a solid district candidate for Supervisor. Had the endorsement of the Bay Guardian gone his way, I believe he’d be the current District 9 Supervisor. I believe Luke Thomas even got a David Campos interview on the importance of this endorsement in District 9. With that said, David Campos has done a great job as Supervisor, and I assume that Mark Sanchez also would have done very well. And there was no chance of Eva Royal winning this one, so there was little risk in any of the IRV strategies in District 9.
September 28, 2010 at 11:09 am
I don’t think that is against the law for an officer of the court to post candidate related posts from a 501(c)3 nonprofit office computer.
However, such conduct does reflect on the continued viability of the Tenderloin Housing Clinic as an ongoing nonprofit enterprise.
For all of that caterwauling that we read on the virtual pages of beyondchron about how whatever awful entity crosses Randy Shaw and the THC hates the poor because they are challenging whatever the THC is doing ostensibly for and on behalf of the poor, here is a case where the THC itself is threatening whatever “good work” the THC might do in the future for their captive poor by imperiling the THC’s 501(c)3 status.
BUSTED!
-marc
September 28, 2010 at 10:30 am
“paulhogarth, on September 27th, 2010 at 11:33 am Said: ”
Could this be someone making campaign related postings during business hours from a nonprofit computer?
-marc
September 28, 2010 at 9:48 am
I disagree with Chris that Keys has an operation that can compete with Walker and Kim.
Since we are in campaign mode and secrecy is the order of the day, there is no way to hash that out in a way that will produce any clear results at this time.
That Kim did not endorse Walker and that Walker did not endorse Kim ratifies my position to not endorse either over the other. Both need to realize that this election is about keeping D6 in the progressive column rather than about either of them.
We can count on Puff Ho-garth to carry water for Randy Shaw with the imbecilic argument by assertions of cooties that translates into “At least Jane Kim endorsed other candidates, both of whom will get fewer votes than she and whose votes will be exhausted should Kim come in below Walker.” That’s what we’re paying Puff-Ho to do, folks. Either way, really, the THC will get paid while SRO residents slip further and further into poverty.
What does it mean that I am being the responsible adult in D6, how far have we fallen?
-marc
September 27, 2010 at 6:58 pm
Chris,
You did pretty much the same thing in the D-9 race when you went with a sure loser (Eric Quezada) all the while telling us that he could win and then you smeared Sanchez. Your bombastics used to be an amusing diversion. At the moment you are a cement block chained to the ankles of the Progressive movement.
Perhaps Arthur Evans and Rob Anderson can be your bartenders?
h.
September 27, 2010 at 3:57 pm
I agree that if anyone knows how to run a mail campaign / ID voters, it is you. From my limited experience James is also a very aggressive and effective campaigner who is incredible at talking to voters. As I said before, deep down I do root for both of them. On the other hand for walker and kim not to acknowledge one another to me doesn’t excite me too much.
I don’t see James pulling it off, and I don’t say that because I wish it to be the case. It is totally fair to call me a D6 armchair pundit, as I am busy doing other stuff. From your position you see it differently, so I guess we will just have to wait 5 more weeks and see.
September 27, 2010 at 3:52 pm
Sparks, as of last week, has not decided whom she’ll endorse.
September 27, 2010 at 3:47 pm
Great news,
Where’s your photo of the happy threesome? Perhaps juxtaposed with photos of Walker’s three favorites (Walker/Walker/Walker).
Did Sparks endorse 2 others?
h.
September 27, 2010 at 3:46 pm
The only good thing that can be said about the IRV system is that it saves money on run-offs. The idea that there can ever be three acceptable candidates in a local election is delusional, the equally delusional quest for unity in the progressive camp. Voters are lucky if they can find a single candidate worth voting for. It will take years to measure the extent of the damage city progressives have done to San Francisco since the advent of district elections in 2000.
September 27, 2010 at 3:07 pm
The refrain that James Keys is not a viable candidate for Supervisor in District 6 only exposes the class and race biases that remain within progressive circles.
My measure of a viable candidate is related to what it actually takes to win an election. A candidate is viable when they are able to compete in the significant campaign arenas — in order of importance, the ability to identify and turnout voters mostly through phone operations, volunteer base (both in total numbers and level of commitment), high quality endorsements that bring credibility and campaign strength, and a sufficient mail program.
James Keys may not have the most resources, but having accessed tens of thousands of dollars of public funds, I can attest that he will have a sufficient and compelling mail program. On the rest of the tests, he certainly places in the top 1 or 2 candidates in the race. I’m willing to place a bet that he has the most ID’ed voters in the race. And it sure does seem that he has used his quality endorsements more effectively than any other candidate.
For those D6 armchair pundits who wish to write James Keys off, please make a more compelling argument.
September 27, 2010 at 2:48 pm
If only progressives actually had a party to sort out who runs… Daly tried (much to his credit) to hold a Progressive Primary but it failed due to the “progressive pledge” as well as restrictions on which candidates could participate.
Now Daly is running Keys’ campaign, furthering the split of progressive votes.
There’s heaps of irony abound.
September 27, 2010 at 2:33 pm
Well it is a stupid strategy. Telling your supporters to support the other Kim/Walker does not hurt you. The only scenario that a single one of their votes goes to their opponent is when they are out of the race. It is lame if Walker won’t support kim as a second choice, and it isn’t any better if kim endorses 2 people who she knows that her votes can not go to. SUCK all around.
September 27, 2010 at 2:25 pm
Kim had previously considered Hyde and Keys for her endorsement, but last week Kim overtured to Walker for endorsement talks:
http://www.fogcityjournal.com/wordpress/2010/09/d6-ranked-choice-endorsement-strategy-in-flux/
Walker subsequently rebuffed Kim’s overture, affirming her previous statement to FCJ saying she was not going to endorse any D6 candidates:
http://www.fogcityjournal.com/wordpress/2010/09/keys-co-endorses-in-d6/
http://www.fogcityjournal.com/wordpress/2010/09/overheard-in-fog-city-dccc-to-reconsider-d6-endorsement/
September 27, 2010 at 1:53 pm
Actually, rather than a waste of votes, this actually has more negatives, as her supporters may follow this slate and exhaust all of their ballots. And I say this with a lot of admiration for both James and Glendon.
September 27, 2010 at 1:51 pm
I agree that these endorsements are more of a token gestures, than a real strategy of ensuring that ballots do not get exhausted. In my ideal world Keys or Glendon would be viable candidates, but realistically they are going to get way less votes than Kim, making her endorsement of them an arbitrary waste of votes. If Kim and Walker are saying that they care about ensuring that the district remains progressive, they will endorse one another.
September 27, 2010 at 12:31 pm
You missed the part that says “An empty gesture is NOT better than no gesture at all”, didn’t ya?
September 27, 2010 at 11:33 am
You can dispute the wisdom of her choices, but at least she *made* a 2nd and 3rd choice recommendation — unlike Debra Walker. Ranked Choice Voting rewards candidates who “play well with others” …
September 27, 2010 at 11:13 am
I find Kim’s IRV endorsement in D6 a laughable excuse for this supposed movement to ensure that a progressive retains the seat. Had she endorsed a candidate who has any chance of winning (sorry guys, I like you both just fine, but clearly neither of you is a front-runner. Once again, sorry, sorry, sorry) then this endorsement would have had some teeth. Right now, it’s just an empty gesture that really highlights Kim’s divisiveness. An empty gesture is NOT better than no gesture at all. In fact, it’s really just a thinly veiled insult to Meko and Walker, who both have far more skills as future politicians. This really shows us what Kim would be like when elected to office: full of empty gestures.