Supervisor Ahsha Safaí submitted paperwork Monday to enter the race to be mayor.
Overseeing District 11, which covers Excelsior, Outer Mission, Ocean View and part of Ingleside, Safaí was first elected to the board in 2016. He sits on the board’s powerful Budget and Appropriations Committee.
Safaí, who could not be interviewed by press time, is running against his one-time ally Mayor London Breed.
“We're at a crisis point in our city,” Safaí told the San Francisco Examiner. “The economy is cratering downtown and throughout the city. Crime, brazen crime is on the rise. The homeless situation, street conditions, and the opioid crisis is getting worse, not better.”
He is running a campaign focused on San Francisco’s future, aiming to tackle issues related to homelessness, public safety, poverty, cleanliness and housing.
“People are very dissatisfied with the current mayor, dissatisfied with the condition of the city and they’re looking for change,” Safaí told the San Francisco Chronicle.
Safaí sponsored Proposition C to create the Homelessness Oversight Commission. Over his political career he has also backed initiatives such as Affordable Housing Now, emergency funds for police overtime and setting up safe parking sites for people living in vehicles at the Balboa Park Upper Yard.
Safaí also told the Examiner that he believes there needs to be unity on all fronts but especially between the mayor’s office and the board of supervisors.
“I’m hopeful for San Francisco,” Safaí told The Examiner. “I’m hopeful for the future, and I really and truly believe that with the right leadership and the right management, we can bring people together to solve these problems.”
Ernest Jones, one of Safaí’s former legislative aides, filed paperwork to seek Safaí’s seat at the board of supervisors next year, records show.
Jones, who is the first candidate to file for District 11, could not be reached by press time.
Stephen Martin-Pinto filed to run for District 7 supervisor next year. Supervisor Myrna Melgar will run to keep her seat, Emma Heiken, her legislative aide, said at a recent meeting about the Balboa Reservoir housing project.
Twenty candidates have filed paperwork to run for mayor in the November 2024 general election.
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Anne Marie Kristoff (she/her) is a recent graduate from San Francisco State University's journalism program. She enjoys writing about the arts, entertainment and nature.
