Supervisor Stephen Sherrill took a large and seemingly decisive lead over opponent Lori Brooke in the District 2 contest on Tuesday, besting Brooke 70 percent to 30 percent.
His win would maintain a staunch ally on the board for Mayor Daniel Lurie at least through the end of the year.
“Supervisor! The Chronicle called it,” an attendee at Sherrill’s election-night party at Lobalita in the Marina shouted as the appointed incumbent District 2 supervisor made his first remarks of the evening.
“Let’s go!” Sherrill responded. The incumbent declared victory.
District 2 voters “want a supervisor who will work collaboratively with our mayor, provide steady leadership, and stay focused on delivering real results for San Francisco,” Sherrill said in a statement.
Sherrill’s near-certain win today would only guarantee him the remainder of Catherine Stefani’s term, which ends in January 2027. To gain a full four-year term beyond that, Sherrill will have to win again in November’s election.
Brooke, for her part, had not conceded as of 10:40 p.m. and did not seem to have a notion to do so Tuesday night. At her watch party, just a five-minute walk from Sherrill’s, the vibes were high, and she was having fun, chatting with friends and snapping pictures of herself and her young adult daughter.
Brooke said she hoped to see an increase in her share of the vote to the 40s. She is already looking to November, and plans to assess this election and what changes to make for the next round.
“I’m really, really proud of my campaign,” Brooke said. “I’ve never run for anything. We did it on a reasonable budget, like most people should run on.”
Mayor London Breed appointed Sherrill in December 2024 after Stefani vacated the seat to become one of San Francisco’s state assembly members.
With today’s likely victory, the November race may be a cake walk: Though other contenders can enter the fray, Sherrill’s strong showing means they would face a steep uphill battle.
Sherrill, for his part, told Mission Local that voters liked what they saw in the last 18 months, and want it to continue.
The policy differences between Sherrill and Brooke largely came down to housing. While the candidates were mostly in lockstep on policing and drug use. Sherrill is more pro-housing, and Brooke more skeptical of new development.
Sherrill supported the mayor’s upzoning plan to allow six- to eight-story buildings on commercial corridors in District 2, for example, while Brooke vehemently opposed it.
Both, however, opposed the controversial 25-story Marina Safeway development proposal. Sherrill said he worried large projects like that could turn residents against new housing.
It became a contentious issue, but not enough to sway many residents.
“My opponent says he doesn’t like [the Marina Safeway], which is good, but he is endorsed by the very senator and the YIMBY organizations that wrote and championed the laws that made it possible,” Brooke said at a debate.
Throughout the campaign, Brooke positioned herself as an independent voice, contrasting herself with Sherrill, who has been a close ally of Lurie’s.
Brooke also tried to make hay out of Sherrill’s appointment process, which — according to two former Breed staffers — was made by the ex-mayor in the hopes of currying favor with Michael Bloomberg, a mentor of Sherrill’s.
Breed has denied the allegations. District 2 voters shrugged them off.
Sherrill, for his part, treated his relationship with the political establishment as an advantage. He frequently spoke about his collaboration with Mayor Lurie — himself a District 2 resident — and featured Lurie’s endorsement prominently on flyers.
“I am proud that we get to continue to partner together for years to come,” Lurie said at Sherrill’s party. “I look forward to it.”
