Levi's heir Daniel Lurie unseats London Breed to become next SF mayor
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Daniel Lurie defeated Mayor London Breed. Photo by Santiago Mejia/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
Levi's heir Daniel Lurie will serve as San Francisco's new mayor after defeating London Breed in the city's most closely watched local race, preliminary results show.
The latest: Lurie won about 56% of votes after ranked-choice tallies, compared to Breed's approximate 43%. The mayor conceded Thursday evening, sharing on social media that she'd congratulated Lurie in a phone call and pledged to ensure a smooth transition.
- Breed and Lurie were the last two candidates battling for first place after Supervisor Aaron Peskin and former interim Mayor Mark Farrell were eliminated due to the ranked-choice voting (RCV) system.
- Lurie, who financed his campaign with almost $8.7 million from his own wallet, surged in the polls in the weeks leading up to the election after securing support from many Asian American voters in the Sunset and Richmond districts.
- RCV also gave him an advantage as he was ranked second by many voters who put another candidate as their first. Once they were eliminated, Lurie became their new top choice.
What they're saying: "I'm deeply grateful to my incredible family, campaign team and every San Franciscan who voted for accountability, service, and change," Lurie said in a statement. "No matter who you supported in this election, we stand united in the fight for San Francisco's future and a safer and more affordable city for all."
The other side: "Being Mayor of San Francisco has been the greatest honor of my lifetime," Breed wrote on X. "At the end of the day, this job is bigger than any one person and what matters is that we keep moving this City forward ... I know we are both committed to improving this City we love."
What's next: Lurie plans to address the results and "make an important announcement" on Friday, his campaign tells Axios.
State of play: Heading into Election Day, polls showed that no candidate had the approval of at least 50% of voters.
- Farrell's support may have waned after he was hit with the largest campaign ethics fine in San Francisco history on Monday.
The big picture: Lurie will take office at a critical juncture as San Francisco struggles with its continued budget deficits and an ongoing homelessness and housing crisis.