Eliminated congressional candidate Saikat Chakrabarti is redirecting his campaign to canvas for Supervisor Connie Chan, according to an email obtained by Mission Local.
“We are currently transitioning campaigning operations into a new entity that will continue field work in support of the Connie Chan campaign,” read the email, which was sent to campaign workers on June 9.
Chakrabarti had a well-staffed field team: The candidate hired over 250 canvassers, including many well-paid Chinese-language ones, to create what he called the “the largest field campaign in U.S. congressional race history.”
Some of that team will now be knocking doors and flyering the city in support of Chan.
On June 11, Chakrabarti converted his campaign committee into the “SF Solidarity PAC,” which can spend freely in support of other candidates. His new effort in support of Chan appears to be the PAC’s first act.
The move comes after Chakrabarti’s primary loss, where he came in third with 18 percent of the vote. Chan and State Sen. Scott Wiener advanced to the general election, earning 30 percent and 41 percent of the vote respectively.
It is unclear whether Chakrabarti will be putting more funds into the PAC or just spending down whatever remains in his campaign account. The candidate, who became a centimillionaire from his early days at Stripe, had put some $10 million of his own money into his campaign, some of which may remain after his loss.
In the email, staffers were told that the “new initiative” would end on July 10. “If you wish to continue, you will remain in your current field role and you will continue working through Friday, July 10, 2026, when this initiative to support Connie Chan is expected to end,” the email says.
Chakrabarti’s decision to back Chan over Wiener is not a surprise — she is running in the progressive lane against Wiener. On the campaign trail he frequently criticized Wiener, but avoided directly attacking Chan.
Chakrabarti’s campaign had previously pledged to support Chan if he lost. “If Connie wins the primary, Saikat and his entire team will support her. If Saikat wins the primary, he hopes she will do the same,” spokesperson Tiffaney Bradley told the San Francisco Standard in April.
Additional reporting by Joe Rivano Barros.
Well, maybe he really does walk the walk. Thanks, Chak!
Credit where it’s due
I wonder how well that will go over with his fans. Most have been bizarrely negative about her, accusing her of all sorts of crazy stuff. I mean, she’s not very good at “politics”, but in general has been a decent person and trying to do progressive things. Weiner, on the other hand, has become more and more entrenched. I’m not a huge fan of either, but if we put Weiner in office, he’s a pro at keeping his job. He’ll be there until we’re all dead. So, this is your chance to decide if you want “meh” for the rest of your voting life or do you want “maybe great, but we can boot her out in 2yrs if she doesn’t perform”?
Honestly, it’s prob safer to go with wiener but I’m looking for a change.
Pretty funny that the guy who supposedly hates the establishment is directing his paid minions to support the Pelosi-endorsed candidate.