I voted

All done. It was not a terribly gripping ballot. And having been out of the state for several months and not living in a part of San Francisco where we have a local supervisor contest, I didn't have huge personal interest in much of what I voted on. So I will skip writing my usual more thorough comments.

Statewide offices

All the people with a D after their names will almost certainly be elected. So I didn't feel I had to vote for most of them.

An exception was Shirley Weber, the Secretary of State, who has long been an honorable fighter for civil rights and justice in the San Diego area. I liked voting for her.

I also voted for Rob Bonta, the Attorney General, and Alex Padilla, our appointed U.S. Senator. They are at least novel incumbents. We needed new blood.

Statewide propositions

Prop. 1 -- YES! Let's cast an overwhelming vote to protect abortion rights.

Props. 26 & 27 -- dueling gambling measures. Enough already. NO

Prop. 31 -- banning flavored tobacco products. Why are we even voting on this? YES, of course.

San Francisco

I wish I knew what and who the School Board needed. I don't. The recall election meant that Mayor London Breed has appointed most of them. That's not a situation I trust. But what can an elected Board do about the schools?

I do know that City College of San Francisco is in trouble because the state wants it to be largely a feeder system for the UC colleges and universities, while traditionally it has severed a broader role for communities of adult learners. The union of City College teachers suggested we go with Susan Solomon, Anita Martinez, and Vick Chung to navigate the pressures created by a state system which doesn't give a damn about local priorities for City College. I voted for them. I also support San Francisco Prop. O which would create a local funding stream for the sort of adult educational institution we've had and still want.

District Attorney: some votes are simple. I wouldn't vote for Mayor Breed's handpicked D.A., Brooke Jenkins, for toilet cleaner. She showed herself a politically ambitious, unprincipled opportunist while working to throw out her predecessor. Her policies seem to consist of tough posturing and little justice, so long as she performs the theater of "doing something" about people's fears for their safety. Doing something doesn't include challenging a police department that is both lazy and violent toward those who are poor, Black, and Brown. 

So who to replace Jenkins? I went with John Hamasaki who has his own flaws, but has been a critic of the SFPD on the Police Commission and a defense lawyer. There's nobody better on offer.

Public Defender: Manu Raja continues to lead a model department. Let's endorse his work.

City ballot measures

No on D; Yes on E - the city needs more affordable housing. It also doesn't need to let profiteering developers make a mint on building places where no ordinary San Franciscan can afford to live. Housing policy is complicated and full of fraudulent arguments. The people who care most about affordable housing say the better measure here is E and I believe them.

Yes on F - for the libraries, the city's most benevolent institutions.

Yes on H - move most city elections to high turnout presidential years. The current system of electing the mayor and others in off-years was put in place to protect traditional city elites in the turbulent 70s and 80s. Let's consolidate these choices.

Yes on M - that's the empty homes tax. Let's penalize landlords who keep livable spaces empty while waiting to speculate.

Yes on O - let's pay for the sort of City College San Francisco wants and needs!