Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi’s communications director, Ian Krager, will be Supervisor Connie Chan’s congressional campaign’s communications director starting Aug. 1, according to Chan’s campaign.
Political consultants say the move is yet another sign that Pelosi is putting her thumb on the scale for Chan. Pelosi endorsed Chan on May 18 and has since shepherded her through major fundraising opportunities in Washington. And, now, she is offering Chan the top talent on her team.
Krager, 26, is one of the last two communications staffers left in Pelosi’s office.
“It has been the honor of a lifetime to help tell the story of Speaker Pelosi’s historic leadership for San Francisco and America,” Krager, who’s been Pelosi’s communications director since July 2024, said in a statement. “I’m thrilled to join Connie Chan’s campaign at this pivotal moment.”
Krager, who will relocate to San Francisco, is expected to bring Chan more news coverage in more prominent newspapers.
“She’s doing everything she can to get [Chan] elected,” said Nadia Rahman, who was the political director of Saikat Chakrabarti’s congressional campaign and now supports Chan.
Campaigns are a different beast versus communications work in the capital, but Krager has the experience of dealing with and building relationships with reporters at every level from local news to international news as Pelosi’s spokesperson, said Rahman. It’s something no one else in this race currently has, she added.
Chan’s current campaign spokesperson and consultant Julie Edwards will stay on as a consultant.
The decision followed Chan’s two-day trip to Washington last week that included a meeting with Pelosi on Wednesday early afternoon, and an evening reception hosted by both Pelosi and Sen. Adam Schiff.
The two days were filled with at least 10 meetings, events, and media appearance, which would help build Chan a national Democratic coalition around the themes of labor, abortion rights, gun safety, education and climate.
She also recorded a segment for The Dean Obeidallah Show, a national radio show that examines current issues from a Muslim American perspective.
I’ll be interested to see how he communicates how a “do nothing” at the city district level will do anything meaningful at the national level.
“The two days were filled with at least 10 meetings, events, and media appearance, which would help build Chan a national Democratic coalition around the themes of labor, abortion rights, gun safety, education and climate.”
There you have it, Pelosi and Schiff, regurgitating the failed “kitchen sink” approach of the Harris 2026 campaign while entirely missing the fundamental issue of the present: AFFORDABILITY! — of which “housing affordability”, specifically, is the keystone. And housing affordability can only be addressed by creating more housing — a lot more housing.
Senator Scott Wiener has been full-in and extraordinarily effective on this all-encompassing issue, whereas Connie Chan has been anti-housing-creation for her entire ineffectual career.
Scott Weiner is the clear choice to represent CA11 in Congress.
You write, “Political consultants say the move is yet another sign that Pelosi is putting her thumb on the scale for Chan.”
Putting a thumb on the scale is rooted in the dishonest practice of merchants putting a literal thumb on a literal scale to make it appear that the customer is getting more than they are, and paying for more than they receive. It is inherently dishonest.
Nancy Pelosi is free to endorse anyone she pleases for this or any other office.
If there are actual political consultants saying she is being dishonest for endorsing Connie Chan, you should tell us who they are. If it’s the reporter’s point of view, it shouldn’t appear in the article.
I supported Harry Britt against Pelosi 40 years ago, and came to love her for all her work fighting AIDS and for ACA despite her defeat of the openly gay heir to Harvey Milk’s political legacy. Now I just can’t help but be sad to see her campaigning to ensure that her seat representing San Francisco in Congress, after all these years, remains in straight hands. And why? What are her policy disagreements with the gay guy exactly, Mr. Krager?
Why on earth does it matter whether a candidate is gay or not?
Isn’t that identity politics at its very worst?
An endorsement from the greatest member of Congress ever should count for something!
I’m so glad to see Pelosi supporting Chan. While Scott has been great in helping gay and trans rights he also has been bought and paid for by the real estate industry which is all powerful in California. The trickle down theory was shown it was crap during Reagan so people who are using it now for housing, aren’t arguing in good faith. Build affordable housing. Nor more ultra rich condos, houses, limited affordable housing in apartments etc. It does not trickle down. It gets taken off the market or gets bought as second homes for the ultra rich. Vote for Connie Chan.