By Lisa Awbrey, HANC Vice-President

A disturbing trend in San Francisco’s recent elections is unfolding. Venture capitalists, Tech, and real estate billionaires are spending millions of dollars to control the outcomes of our local district elections. They slander and blame democratically elected progressives with a goal of removing them from office.

Please join HANC at our next public meeting on Thursday July 13, 2023 @ 7 PM where we will discuss the organization and influence of dark money in local and future elections. We will discuss recently formed (and billionaire funded) astro turf groups and Super PACs like GrowSF, TogetherSF, RescueSF, Neighbors for a BetterSF, Vote&ChangeSF, SOAR, and Hi5D5. The stated objective of these well-funded and organized groups is to target and remove truly progressive Supervisors Dean Preston, Connie Chan, Hillary Ronen and Shamann Walton from the Board of Supervisors and replace them with moderates. 

The newly formed local neighborhood groups say they promote cleanliness, safety and health, along with “law & order” campaigns; frequent tactics include stoking fears about crime and blaming progressive office holders as the cause.

Your ability as a community member and voter to weigh in on local policy and decision making is being targeted. All San Franciscans are impacted daily by decisions and policy making to do with issues like housing, public transit, schools, unhoused neighbors and health care.

We are living through a dark time in national and local government where transparency, campaign financing, and access to public media and information is eroding on a local, state and national level.

Aiming to Eliminate District Elections

Another stated goal of these groups is the elimination of public engagement and public input in policy making— a “streamlining” of policy and decision making. These groups and monied forces seek to protect their markets and investments by controlling our local government. A stated end goal for TogetherSF, as reported in the Westside Observer in February, is the elimination of unique district supervisors across the city (who are each accountable to their district constituents) and replacement with city wide generalist supervisors (who are accountable to the mayor).

The gutting of our local independent media and newspapers hasn’t helped. Messaging is controlled and misinformation is promoted; personal attacks of elected office holders is a go-to methodology. Demonizing true progressives and democratically elected office holders and threatening them with removal by wasteful and expensive recalls perpetuates a toxic environment. How will we ever address our growing problems if not through careful thought, actions and attempted solutions? 

The elimination of public hearings and access by constituents to their electeds is dangerous. How can voters hold leaders accountable without public access and a transparent media? Multi billion dollar corporations and their CEOs and investors have access; working people, parents and elders must also have equal access. Join us for a thoughtful discussion.