Scott Wiener launches bid for Pelosi's seat
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State Sen. Scott Wiener is campaigning for former Speaker Nancy Pelosi's seat in Congress. Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
State Sen. Scott Wiener officially announced Wednesday that he will run for the congressional seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi.
Why it matters: Wiener's announcement adds a dash of clarity to next year's cloudy midterm picture, as everyone waits to see if the 85-year-old Pelosi will seek another term.
- Wiener, who started his political career as District 8 supervisor and represents San Francisco in the Legislature, previously indicated that he'd wait for Pelosi to retire.
He joins the race after securing several legislative wins this year.
What he's saying: Pelosi "has not said whether she is running, and we are now only a few months out from the filing deadline," Wiener told Axios on Wednesday. "There's an active race happening, so it made sense to get in."
- He declined to comment on how Pelosi is performing, saying that he has "enormous respect" for her and that she has "moved mountains" for San Francisco.
- "We'll wait to hear her decision, but I'm in the race, period," he added.
Zoom in: Asked about the first three things he'd do in office, Wiener said he'd ramp up federal funding for public housing, champion clean energy, and reform the health care system to reduce costs and cover more treatments — particularly for mental illness and addiction.
- "The world has changed, and we have the rise of an authoritarian regime ... in addition to the need to focus on cost of living," he said. "I'm really excited to take the work that we've done at the state level ... national."
- Other topline priorities include civil rights, especially for LGBTQ communities, and regulations around AI, data privacy and net neutrality.
The big picture: Wiener, 55, joins the race shortly after 39-year-old Saikat Chakrabarti — a founding Stripe engineer and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's former chief of staff — tossed his hat in the ring and positioned himself as an anti-establishment candidate.
- If elected, Wiener would be the first out LGBTQ person to represent San Francisco in Congress, per the Bay Area Reporter.
Between the lines: Wiener can point to an accomplished track record in Sacramento as a state legislator, especially on the housing agenda.
- Earlier this year, his landmark California Environmental Quality Act reform bill led the state to roll back environmental regulations for some construction projects in a bid to cut down planning timelines.
- He also authored a recently signed bill to allow denser housing development around transit hubs in California.
- Other successes targeted illegal street vending, AI safety measures, net neutrality protections and solar energy expansion.
Yes, but: He has faced pushback in connection to the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. Pro-Palestinian protesters crashed a pumpkin carving event Wiener hosted last year.
- Wiener, who is Jewish and co-chairs the California Legislative Jewish Caucus, accused those protesters of using antisemitic language and targeting him "in ways that they're not targeting non-Jewish leaders."
- While he maintains his support for a two-state solution, Wiener told Axios what Israel has done in Gaza goes beyond defense and is "horrifying" in the "sheer scale of destruction."
- He does not support selling offensive weapons to the current Israeli government, which he called "messianic extremists who aren't committed to peace or democracy."
Catch up quick: A New Jersey native, Wiener has lived in the Castro since 1997.
- He moved to San Francisco to work as a litigation attorney at Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe and later became a deputy city attorney.
- He served as a supervisor for six years before being elected to the state Senate in 2016.
Fun fact: He is 6-foot-7 and prides himself on being the tallest elected official in the California Legislature.