After crowded candidate forums, District 10 voters push back on giving everyone the mic

Given just one minute to explain how they would hold developers in Bayview-Hunters Point accountable, the top three District 10 supervisorial candidates at last week’s forum sparred on a stage packed with contenders, some of whom had little to offer. 

This was a failing noted by some of the nearly 100 residents who packed into the Southeast Community Center to hear the forum.  

There were good questions and reasonable answers from some of the candidates. On holding developers accountable, Theo Ellington, a front-runner in the race to replace Supervisor Shamann Walton, who is terming out, answered that the city cannot “take money from developers we want to hold accountable.” 

Ellington is one of the plaintiffs in a years-long lawsuit that resulted in a settlement between Lennar Corporation and Five Point Holdings, developers of the former Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, and homeowners, after developers failed to disclose that the land they lived on was contaminated. 

J.R. Eppler, another front-runner and an attorney endorsed by the Sierra Club, argued that residents need to demand “radical transparency” from developers and the U.S. Navy for their failure to disclose continuing problems.   

Dion-Jay Brookter, the CEO of Young Community Developers who’s endorsed by Walton, said that the neighborhood needs to leverage local environmental organizations.

But several other candidates at the July forum — who have not yet received major endorsements or reported any monetary contributions from donors — couldn’t answer the question, with one citing a lack of knowledge of one of the most overarching issues facing the city’s southeast. 

Nevertheless, the moderators — Otis R. Taylor Jr., formerly of KQED, and Stephanie Lin from KRON-4 — dutifully asked each of the nine candidates on stage more questions for almost two hours. 

When asked how to improve Bayview-Hunters Point’s Third Street corridor, which has a high rate of vacancies and has struggled to bounce back from the pandemic, Eppler suggested rezoning, adding housing and art opportunities.

Brookter suggested providing more economic assistance to new businesses, such as the Office of Economic and Workforce Development’s recent Storefront Opportunity Grants. Ellington said that within his first 30 days in office, he would produce a community and economic development plan to get the corridor back on track. 

But as the evening wore on, answers from some of the other candidates grew stranger. 

One candidate proposed an aerial tramway ride down Third Street, and another said that liquor stores were the source of the corridor’s problems. Another promised no budget cuts, even as San Francisco stares down a long-term structural deficit. 

Audience members rebelled when the moderator announced that there would only be time for one query from the crowd, after dozens had submitted questions. The decision prompted jeers, and some of the attendees stormed out of the community center meeting room.  

“We’ve had enough of this,” one audience member yelled before leaving. “We’ve got the short end of the stick.” 

Since district elections were reestablished in 2000, three supervisors have represented District 10: Sophie Maxwell, Malia Cohen, and Walton. The district has historically been a political stronghold for Black San Franciscans.

It’s a district with serious challenges: High unemployment rates, disproportionate exposure to pollution and a commercial corridor that has been slow to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Development along Bayview-Hunters Point’s waterfront has stalled for years, and has been rife with issues. The upcoming closure of the Islais Creek Bridge, which will cut off the neighborhood’s thoroughfare from neighboring Dogpatch, promises further delays in recovery. 

Sean Karlin, communications director for the Eastern Neighborhoods Democratic Club, which hosted last week’s forum, said he felt it was “important” to include all candidates set to appear on the ballot, and give everyone a fair shot. 

But not everyone agrees. 

Candidates can pay just $500 to get on the ballot, and need only 20 signatures on a petition to qualify for nomination. In 2011, a staggering 21 candidates appeared on the ballot for District 10 supervisor, with Malia Cohen winning by a narrow margin through ranked-choice voting. In 2018, six ran for the seat, with Walton winning comfortably. 

Cohen argued that there should be a higher threshold for candidates to appear at public debates, much like the gubernatorial or even presidential race.

“We don’t have time to waste on perennial candidates that will divide the voter pool and make confusion for everyone else,” said Cohen, now the California state controller. 

Tony Kelly, who ran for the Board of Supervisors in District 10 three times, however, disagreed and said that barring some “less serious” candidates from participating in forums would create “a free speech issue.” Kelly said that the current process allows for less-established candidates, who may have still done valuable community work, to throw their hats in the ring. 

After a previous neighborhood forum held at the Providence Baptist Church on June 29, Shavonne Hines-Foster, a newly appointed commissioner to the Southeast Community Facility Commission, posted to Instagram expressing her disappointment that candidates weren’t properly vetted before allowing them to appear before a crowd. 

“It’s upsetting and it’s negligent to the community’s desire to be politically educated,” said Hines-Foster, in a video. 

At that forum, seven of the 10 candidates appeared, including front-runners Ellington, Brookter and Eppler. The responses of some of the other candidates prompted sighs and admonishments from the crowd. 

Candidate Mike “Trouble” Lin was scolded by moderator Dexter Hall, interim director of the Providence Foundation, after he referred to an audience member’s shirt as “Frisco-type shit.” Lin then announced that he wrote in Taylor Swift for president in 2024 because he “didn’t like Kamala Harris or Trump.” 

“I’m tired of sitting here and listening to this,” shouted one member of the audience after Lin responded to a question on public safety by arguing that he will lean “moderate” because he is Asian. “I put my time out to come here. This is supposed to be for the people.” 

Hines-Foster expressed concern that some candidates may use the platform of the election as a “political entry point,” rather than from genuine interest in representing the district. 

“The issues we face should be tackled head-on the same way issues in the rest of the city are,” said Hines-Foster in her post. “Political education should be useful, vetted, and accessible — not a mockery.” 

Mission Local is running a weekly series asking candidates to answer a question about their positions. We will only be including candidates who have won a major endorsement or have publicly reported campaign contributions. Candidates may be added to this series if they meet these criteria.