Gloria survived a tough cycle for big city California mayors

Driving the news: The bid to recall Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao won by a nearly 2-1 margin, and San Francisco Mayor London Breed lost her reelection to Levi Strauss heir Daniel Lurie who has never held elected office.

• Gloria won, but his margin over Larry Turner, a political independent and police officer who was a first-time candidate with few endorsements or institutional backing, led the Union-Tribune's editorial board to conclude he "was likely doomed" against a more competitive candidate.
• Oceanside Mayor Esther Sanchez is also trailing in her reelection bid against the city's Deputy Mayor Ryan Keim, a Republican.

What he's saying: "This is a truth for mayors all across the United States," Gloria said on election night. 

• "All of us have served under the most difficult of circumstances. Pandemic, recession, inflation, social unrest: We've all paid the price of leading our cities during this difficult time. I feel like I'm being treated the same way as other mayors, although some folks are not being reelected."

Yes, but: Things might not be getting any easier.

• Gloria championed Measure E, a one-cent sales tax, as a necessity to avoid service cuts across the city. It was trailing by about 7,000 votes as of Friday afternoon, but could still prevail.

Between the lines: Turner beat Gloria in plenty of city districts, as pointed out by election analyst Vince Vasquez demonstrated.

• Gloria struggled in swaths of Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Bay Park, Mission Hills and La Jolla.