Our 2024 early endorsements are here

SF Rising Action Fund is thrilled to announce our early endorsements for 4 candidates who will be on the ballot in 2024. For the March 5th Presidential Primary, we endorse Barbara Lee for U.S. Senate. For the November 5th General Election, we endorse incumbents Connie Chan for District 1 Supervisor, Dean Preston for District 5 Supervisor, and Myrna Melgar for District 7 Supervisor. We are confident that amidst the many crises our city, state, and country faces, these champions of progressive change will center the needs of working-class communities and communities of color. Stay tuned for our full endorsement slate for the March 5th primaries by signing up for our email list at: www.sfrisingaction.org and by following us on social media at @sfrisingaction.

Connie Chan – SF Rising Action Fund is proud to announce our endorsement for Connie Chan for District 1 Supervisor. As a Chinese immigrant herself, we know that Supervisor Chan will continue to be a leader for working-class communities and communities of color in District 1. In her first term, Supervisor Chan prioritized public safety for all, supporting tenants and small property landlords, protecting workers, and expanding access to public transportation. 

Some of her notable accomplishments include:

• Ensuring our law enforcement agencies administer victim services and justice equitably
• Advocating for SFMTA to install safety improvements in District 1 where our neighbors have been injured, like protected bicycle lanes
• Co-sponsored the first Union-At-Home legislation to allow tenant organizing activities in buildings with five or more rental units after tenants raised concerns about corporate landlords refusing to negotiate rent relief or tenant rights issues during the pandemic
• As Budget Chair, she worked hard to ensure that Single Room Occupancy (SRO) housing, community farms, tenant counseling, and many other social services remained intact for immigrant, low-income, and communities of color, all in the face of a looming deficit

With all the work Supervisor Chan has done for her community in just her first term, we can’t wait to see what she will accomplish in her next four years in office!

Dean Preston – We are proud to endorse Supervisor Dean Preston for his re-election as the District 5 Supervisor. In his first term, Supervisor Preston worked to protect tenants’ rights, make sure that the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share in taxes, expand access to public transportation, acquire housing for unhoused people, and broaden our city’s use of alternatives to policing. 

Some of his notable accomplishments include:

• Securing more than $40 million of local funds for rent relief, the most of any California city, relieving thousands of tenants of crushing rent debt and stopping evictions. 
• Ensuring that the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share of taxes, taxing high-end real estate sales to fund social housing, a tax that’s already raised over a quarter of a billion dollars, and will raise over $100 million annually from the richest real estate investors. 
• Supporting community ambassadors, crisis response teams, and neighborhood health outreach teams to address public safety in a less harmful and more effective way than policing
• Leading efforts to restore critical Muni lines that were suspended during the pandemic, and stopping fare increases for public transportation.

As a 30-year District 5 resident and long-time tenants’ rights champion, Supervisor Preston knows his district and the needs of District 5 community members inside out. We’re endorsing him for re-election because we know that Supervisor Preston will continue to listen to District 5 communities to understand and address the most pressing issues they face with bold and innovative solutions.

Myrna Melgar – We are proud to endorse Supervisor Myrna Melgar for her re-election as District 7 Supervisor. 

In her first term as the first ever Latina elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, Supervisor Melgar:

• Advocated for free Muni access for all youth in San Francisco
• Co-sponsored legislation to require sick leave benefits for nannies, cleaners, and gardeners
• Called out the SF Chronicle for scapegoating Honduran immigrants for the fentanyl crisis 
• Stood in solidarity with California Academy of Sciences and Felton Institute workers in their efforts to unionize
• Played a leading role in the fight to save Laguna Honda Hospital
• Adding more Rent Control Units to the Housing Stock via the Family Housing Opportunities Act 

Although we have concerns about Supervisor Melgar’s stance on supporting low-income housing or housing for unhoused communities, we still think she is someone we can work with in a second term.

We hope that in a second term, Supervisor Melgar will ensure that unhoused and housing-insecure residents in her district receive adequate resources and that she will support and champion affordable housing in her district and across the city for low-income and immigrant communities.  

Barbara Lee –  As a member of the California Working Families Party, SF Rising Action Fund is proud to endorse Barbara Lee. Congresswoman Lee is a lifelong organizer and progressive champion. During her time in the state legislature, she wrote California’s first Violence Against Women Act and the California Schools Hate Crimes Reduction Act. When she was elected to Congress, Congresswoman Lee introduced the landmark Marijuana Justice Act to reform unjust marijuana laws and address their disproportionate impact on BIPOC communities. And, when every other member of Congress wouldn’t, she cast the sole no vote against giving the president unlimited war powers after 9/11. 

As a strong supporter of Medicare for All, criminal justice reforms, investments in housing and education, and other critical policies that would address the issues most pressing to marginalized communities, we know that Congresswoman Lee will be a strong voice for working-class communities and communities of color that we need in the United States Senate.