This weekend, our Political Action/Endorsement Committee interviewed candidates for the June 2026 election. Every PAC recommendation that follows is rooted in how the candidates align with and advance SFWPC’s policy agenda – on gender-based violence, reproductive freedom, housing, childcare, and economic security. Alignment with our platform is the foundation for these recommendations.
We appreciate all the candidates who made time to complete our questionnaire and speak to us during their interviews this past weekend.
We also invite you to vote from March 23 – March 25, should you be an eligible member. If you have not received an electronic ballot via email by noon on Tuesday March 24 and believe you are an eligible member, please contact our Membership Chair at membership@sfwpc.org.
For our thoughts, please read our statements below these PAC recommendations.
Candidates
California Congressional District 11 — Connie Chan
Governor — Katie Porter
Lieutenant Governor — Fiona Ma
State Treasurer — Eleni Kounalakis
Board of Equalization — Sally Lieber
Insurance Commissioner — Jane Kim
Superintendent of Public Instruction — Nichelle Henderson
Board of Supervisors, District 2 — [Sole] Stephen Sherrill
Board of Supervisors, District 4 — [Sole] Natalie Gee
San Francisco Board of Education — Phil Kim
San Francisco Superior Court, Seat 16 — Phoebe Maffei
Local ballot measures
Prop A – Earthquake Safety and Emergency Response Bond – Yes
Prop B – Term Limit Reform – Yes
Prop C – Business Reform Tax – No
Prop D – Overpaid CEO Act – Yes
SFWPC Statements on our PAC Recommendations
Toxicity in Political Spaces
Reducing toxicity in politics is essential to our work combating abuse, harassment, and all forms of violence. We expect every candidate to run on their record and their policy vision — and to treat the staff, volunteers, and community partners who make campaigns possible with dignity. How a candidate leads internally tells us everything about how they will lead in office. As an organization committed to accountability and equity – and dedicated to combating abuse, harassment, and assault – SFWPC takes these concerns seriously. We also recognize the broader social context in which women in leadership are routinely held to higher scrutiny than their male counterparts.
Campaigns and public offices must foster cultures that uplift diverse voices and ensure that all staff feel safe and respected in their working environment. Although all candidates and campaigns should comply, our expectations regarding this are most applicable to and should be taken seriously by the candidates we have recommended for endorsement.
A Caution on Candidate “Viability”
As conversations about “viability” continue to shape the field, we want to name what is often left unsaid: these conversations disproportionately disadvantage women and people of color. This is especially true in the Governor’s race and Congressional District 11 race. SFWPC remains committed to uplifting and working towards a future where vision, experience, and impact are the sole qualities that matter. Sadly, money is a significant and real issue in the nations’ largest state and in San Francisco. The reality is that those who lack institutional support must make up for it with large investments to directly speak to voters. Ignoring that reality could be disastrous. The stakes for our communities are too high to treat this primary as anything other than the urgent moment it is.
Candidates:
California Congressional District 11:
After a thorough review of questionnaires and candidate interviews, SFWPC recommends Connie Chan for California’s 11th Congressional District to our membership.
This race is one of the most consequential San Francisco has seen in a generation. With Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi retiring after nearly four decades, this seat is open for the first time in the political lives of most San Francisco voters. SFWPC does not take lightly the responsibility of recommending who should carry the progressive, feminist legacy of this district to Washington. We considered all three major Democratic candidates carefully and respectfully.
Chan embodies SFWPC’s commitment to champion policies that advance intersectional feminism, racial justice, gender equity, and equitable systems and structures. She embodies these values not as talking points, but as a documented legislative record built in San Francisco. Since her election to the Board of Supervisors in 2020, she has raised awareness of hate crimes against Asian Americans, advocated for affordable housing, and strengthened tenants’ rights — all priorities we champion.
Her record on economic security for women is unmatched in this field. Chan has pushed for skilled and trained labor in all public works and affordable housing projects, passed legislation to strengthen the Union at Home program, co-sponsored eviction protections, restored funding for single-room occupancy residents, and secured living wages – with guaranteed cost-of-living adjustments – for in-home support service and healthcare workers. These are women’s issues. These are our issues.
In a City categorized by political “camps,” Chan’s demonstrated ability to collaborate across ideological lines is a welcome sign. As Chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, Chan worked with Mayor Lurie to create a $400 million reserve to defend against Trump administration cuts to social services like Medi-Cal and Medicaid, secured $3.5 million in additional aid for immigration protections, and delivered $15 million for free summer camps for K-8 public school students – investments that disproportionately relieve burdens carried by women and families, and directly counter federal takeaways.
We understand that Connie has room to grow in terms of knowledge of federal policy in comparison to her competitors. However, her robust local record informs our trust in her judgment. If elected, Chan would become the first Asian American to represent San Francisco in Congress. In the era of Trump 2.0, that representation matters more than ever. We have also seen many women term out or retire from office only to be replaced by men. While many of these men are our allies, this trend is notable and alarming, particularly at the federal level, in an era where women’s rights are actively being eroded. We are strongly recommending our membership vote for Connie Chan.
SFWPC has deep respect for Senator Wiener and values the relationship we have built with him over many years. He has been a genuine ally on LGBTQ+ rights, has authored a significant amount of meaningful legislation, and spoken out on issues we care about, including holding people in public life accountable for violence against women. We do not make this recommendation lightly.
While his local and state record is unmatched in this race, we have concerns regarding our alignment on federal policy, particularly in regards to the genocide in Gaza.
Saikat Chakrabarti has been a welcome addition to this race, with genuine progressive priorities in recent months. We appreciate his willingness to engage with our community and his clear positioning on Gaza and economic justice. He is a compelling figure. Ultimately, his lack of visibility and strong connections to this City at either the elected or advocate level compared to his competitors raises questions regarding his positioning in Congress in terms of the tech community from which he comes vs the needs of working people here now.
California Governor:
SFWPC recommends Katie Porter for California Governor.
In this era of political tumult, the California Governor’s office needs a leader with a strong policy track record, deep experience with state operations and federal government, and the courage to lead with clarity when working against powerful interests, at the helm. In a crowded field of candidates, Rep. Porter stands out.
As a former UC professor, consumer protection advocate, and single mother of three, she brings firsthand knowledge of the economic pressures California women navigate daily. Her policy commitments reflect that understanding concretely: universal childcare, tuition-free college, elimination of the single-parent penalty embedded in budget and tax calculations, and reproductive freedom written directly into the state budget — structural interventions, not talking points. As the federal government continues to attack the rights of women, nonbinary, and trans Californians, we need a governor who has already spent her career holding power accountable and winning.
Thirty-two U.S. states have had a woman governor. California is long overdue for representation in our highest ranking office. We strongly recommend our membership vote to support Katie Porter for Governor.
SFWPC is grateful for the opportunity to interview Betty Yee, a lifelong San Franciscan whose budgeting expertise and policy depth are among the strongest in this field. We appreciate her commitment to ensure providers of women’s healthcare are not criminalized and her recognition of immigrant communities’ essential contributions across the state. We have deep respect for her record of public service and appreciate her genuine engagement in our endorsement process.
California Lt. Governor:
SFWPC recommends Fiona Ma for Lieutenant Governor.
California’s current State Treasurer, Ma was first elected in 2018 with the most votes in state history for the Treasurer’s office. She is the first woman of color and the first Certified Public Accountant elected to the role.
Ma brings with her decades of policy expertise and a track record of supporting women’s rights. Starting her career in the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, Ma has been a California State Assemblymember, the Speaker Pro Tempore of the California Legislature, and a national leader in public finance. Throughout these roles, she has demonstrated a strong commitment to advancing policies that protect and uplift women, notably championing legislation that ensures the safety of women and healthcare providers through the abortion clinic “bubble law.”
While this race has a number of qualified candidates and longtime allies to SFWPC, Ma stands apart as the most qualified and the most aligned. A founding member of SFWPC, Ma represents the values and leadership our organization continues to promote.
California State Treasurer:
SFWPC recommends Eleni Kounalakis for California State Treasurer.
Her candidacy reflects a powerful and consistent alignment with our priorities around economic security, gender equity, and expanding access to opportunity for women, particularly through her focus on affordable housing, access to capital for women-owned businesses, and investments in care infrastructure. She brings significant experience in public service and leadership (both state and international), and has demonstrated a commitment to advancing women’s representation and integrating equity into public investment decisions.
Though Kounalakis brings strong leadership experience and a clear commitment to advancing equity through public investment, we note the transition from Lieutenant Governor to State Treasurer requires deeper direct engagement with bond markets and fiscal execution than her prior office has demanded — an area we expect her to develop quickly.
Board of Equalization:
SFWPC recommends Sally Lieber for the Board of Equalization (BOE).
Lieber is the current Chair of the BOE and a proven tax policy leader – her years in the Assembly give her the deep legislative experience this office requires. She brings that expertise with a clear commitment to ensuring vulnerable communities understand their rights as taxpayers and can access the tax benefits and credits they are entitled to. That combination of technical command and equity focus is exactly what we look for, and we are eager to see Lieber protect the economic interests of Californian women and families.
California Insurance Commissioner:
We recommend Jane Kim for Insurance Commissioner.
Kim’s platform is in direct alignment with our core mission, and she articulated a deep understanding of what is broken in California’s insurance landscape. Her policy proposals are concrete, consumer-centered, and timely. As climate change accelerates and other challenges impact the availability and affordability of car, renters’, and homeowners insurance across the state, California needs an Insurance Commissioner with the vision and will to implement innovative policies and advocate for consumers.
She has had a long relationship with SFWPC and has made herself available when we reached out about issues and concerns we had with her past platforming of a known abuser after his abuse was made public. We have had productive dialogues, and she has demonstrated a public understanding of past harms, a willingness to engage with us to correct harmful behaviors and cultures that perpetuate abuse, and a commitment to uphold SFWPC’s standards for safety and equity in political spaces. That accountability and subsequent action matter to us. We look forward to working with her to advance our shared work and protect the economic interests of all San Franciscans and Californians.
California Superintendent of Public Instruction:
We recommend Nichelle Henderson for California State Superintendent of Public Instruction.
In a crowded field, Henderson stands apart as the only candidate who has spent decades in California’s K-12 classrooms — experience she has built on as a community college trustee and faculty member at the California State University. That depth of experience is exactly what the state’s top education office demands, and it came through clearly in our endorsement process
Henderson’s vision for California’s schools centers the students and communities most often left behind. Her platform prioritizes expanding mental health resources for young women, who disproportionately experience trauma, harassment and gender-based violence that affects their ability to learn; building girls’ access to STEM and high-growth career pathways; and advocating for education funding, livable wages, and affordable housing for the teachers and school staff who make it all possible. She has pledged her full support for healthcare access, reproductive freedom, and strong protections against gender-based violence in schools and political spaces.
If elected, Henderson will make history as the first Black woman to lead California’s schools; this is a milestone that matters not just symbolically, but as a powerful signal to young women across the state that leadership at every level is possible for them.
We are enthusiastic in this recommendation and look forward to working with Nichelle Henderson to champion women, girls, and families statewide.
San Francisco Superior Court – Seat 16:
SFWPC recommends Phoebe Maffei for Superior Court Judge Seat 16.
We are grateful to both candidates, Phoebe Maffei and Alexandra Pray, for their years of dedicated service within the San Francisco Superior Court. Both bring deep courtroom expertise, professionalism, and a clear commitment to fairness in their legal practice.
Our recommendation is grounded in our 2026 policy agenda, which center survivor safety, accessibility, immigrant protections, and women’s full participation in civic life. Maffei’s career as an Assistant District Attorney reflects SFWPC’s priority to address gender-based violence through survivor-centered approaches, sustained work with survivors of domestic violence, elder abuse, and other crimes that disproportionately impact women. She has named clearly what we know to be true: that many women, particularly immigrant women, women of color, and LGBTQ+ individuals, do not feel safe reporting harm. Her emphasis is on building trust so survivors feel safe coming forward.
Maffei also brings a practical focus on courtroom accessibility, including plain language, interpretation access, transparency in proceedings, and reducing delays that can retraumatize survivors. Where these measures already exist, she is committed to consistent, meaningful implementation. Her experience working across different agencies also reflects an approach that balances accountability with fairness.
Given that Superior Court judges are assigned across different case types and do not choose their courtrooms, we also considered which candidate is best positioned to operate effectively across varied legal settings. We believe Maffei’s approach is more closely aligned with these core responsibilities.
Pray demonstrates a strong commitment to addressing systemic bias and promoting dignity for all who navigate the justice system, and we look forward to her continued contributions to a more equitable court. This was a closely considered decision. At this moment, we believe Phoebe Maffei is best positioned to strengthen trust in our courts for the survivors, families, and communities who depend on them.
Board of Supervisors – District 2:
SFWPC sole recommends Stephen Sherrill for District 2 Supervisor.
Supervisor Sherrill’s values and policy priorities strongly align with SFWPC’s mission and commitment to advancing gender equity, supporting families, and ensuring access to critical services across San Francisco.
Sherrill came to our process prepared with specifics. On domestic violence, he has already engaged the Mayor’s Office to advocate for increased investment in the Mayor’s Office on Victims’ Rights, and he demonstrated a clear commitment that those resources must reach individuals who need them most.
He also centered housing as a gender equity issue – recognizing that women, particularly mothers, caregivers, educators, and city workers, are disproportionately impacted by the housing crisis. He spoke to the need for more targeted, citywide housing solutions that ensure these communities can continue to live and work in San Francisco. His commitment to expanding childcare access was equally concrete: he understands that the burden of childcare still falls disproportionately on women, and he expressed strong support for building on Baby Prop C to make childcare more accessible, more affordable, and more responsive to working families — including in the decision-making spaces of government and politics.
Notably, Stephen was the only candidate to proactively raise reproductive healthcare. He named directly that District 2 is home to the only Planned Parenthood in the city and spoke to the urgency of protecting and expanding local reproductive health services. We look forward to working with Supervisor Sherrill as an accountability partner throughout his tenure.
Following a thoughtful interview process, SFWPC appreciates Lori Brooke’s long-standing commitment to community leadership and public service and connection to residents. She brought genuine passion to questions of charter reform advocacy and the need for stronger community accountability to ensure voices are heard and reflected in city policy decisions. Ultimately, other candidates demonstrated closer alignment with SFWPC’s priorities and a clearer path forward on key issues impacting women and families.
Board of Supervisors – District 4:
We sole recommend Natalie Gee for District 4 Supervisor.
In the SFWPC’s two decades of endorsing candidates, we are frequently asked to choose between a good candidate and a better one. In this race, we have something rarer: a candidate who is the whole package — twenty years of community organizing, deep roots in San Francisco, Board-level legislative expertise, and a clear-eyed commitment to the working families who make our city what it is.
Gee began her civic life translating English into Cantonese at neighborhood meetings so her immigrant mother could participate. She co-founded Youth MOJO, spent over a decade organizing in Chinatown, and brought that experience inside City Hall as Chief of Staff to Supervisor Shamann Walton — where she drafted and moved legislation on workers’ rights, affordable housing, transit, healthcare equity, and language access. Twenty years of organizing, followed by Board-level legislative experience. That combination is rare.
On SFWPC’s core issues, Gee’s commitments are concrete: tenant protections over displacement, taxing large corporations over cutting basic services, and transit safety investments that protect the women who depend on Muni to get home safely at night. She is also the sole woman among the top candidates in this race. When women hold power, everyone’s lives improve.SFWPC wishes to acknowledge appointed Supervisor Alan Wong and thank him for his years of partnership with our organization. Through his work at the Children’s Council, as a twice-elected City College trustee, and as a union organizer for homecare and healthcare workers — a workforce that is overwhelmingly women — Supervisor Wong has consistently served those our organization fights for every day. This decision was not made lightly, and we look forward to his continued contributions to this city.
San Francisco Board of Education:
We recommend Phil Kim for the San Francisco Board of Education.
After meeting with all three candidates, Phil stood out because he understands the important role the Board of Education plays and brings a clear, grounded vision for how to lead in a time when both students, particularly immigrant and queer students, and public education itself are under attack. He demonstrates a strong command of education policy and governance with a nuanced and lived understanding of how decisions made at the school board level directly impact classroom, educator, and student outcomes.
Importantly, Phil brings a clear and actionable vision for advancing gender equity in San Francisco schools. His work reflects an understanding that gender equity must be embedded across systems, not treated as a standalone issue. From fighting to expand access for girls, particularly girls of color, in STEM pathways, to strengthening protections against harassment and improving Title IX processes so they are accessible, trauma-informed, and equitable, Phil impressed us with both the values he holds close and the policy knowledge needed to be an effective school board member.
We do want to acknowledge that we are recommending endorsing a male candidate in a field that includes two qualified women. This was not a decision we took lightly. All three candidates bring strong perspectives, lived experience, and a clear commitment to students and teachers.
Ultimately, we believe Phil Kim’s knowledge and preparedness to protect and fight for students on day one set him apart at a time when the stakes for our schools and students are especially high.
SFWPC endorsed Virginia Cheung in 2024 and is happy to see her continued commitment to public service through her candidacy. While she remains a thoughtful and dedicated advocate for students, the PAC Committee had concerns about her depth of knowledge on key policy issues relevant to the role.
As a former ESL teacher, a current SFUSD parent, and community organizer, Brandee Marckmann brings a valuable perspective rooted in both classroom experience and community advocacy, particularly for multilingual learners and families. While we respect the voice she brings to these issues, the Committee ultimately felt that the candidate recommended for endorsement is better prepared at this moment to navigate the full scope and complexity of Board governance.
Local ballot measures:
Propositions C & D
Note: Propositions C and D are competing proposals, and only the measure that passes with the highest vote totals would take effect.
After careful consideration through research, interviews, and analysis of the projections from the Controller’s Office, SFWPC recommends No on Prop C and Yes on D.
The Controller’s office projected that Proposition C would result in a loss of $30-40 million in general revenue, while Proposition D would bring in $250 million to $300 million for the general fund. San Francisco is facing a major fiscal crisis in the coming years, and budget cuts will severely impact services to women, immigrants, the LGBTQIA+ community, survivors of violence, as well as working-class and low-income San Franciscans. Beyond federal and state budget cuts, economic pressures are making it harder for everyone to survive, and we cannot in good conscience recommend measures that would lead to a substantial decrease in revenue, especially when cuts threaten core services ranging from healthcare and housing programs to food security, transit, and community safety. The funds generated by Proposition D would provide a safety net for core services we all rely on in a time of economic hardship.
Proposition D would change the existing Top Executive Pay Tax rates for corporations from .021% to 0.125% (2027 rate) to 0.183% to 1.121% for those paying Gross Receipts Tax. For corporations paying the Administrative Office Tax (a payroll versus gross receipts tax), the change would be from 0.083% to 0.499% (2027) to 0.75% to 4.47%. The larger the wage gap, the higher the tax.
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