Joel Engardo and district elections

The San Francisco Chronicle:

Some of San Francisco Supervisor Joel Engardio’s constituents say he could face political repercussions for supporting Proposition K, a successful ballot measure that will permanently close a 2-mile stretch of the Great Highway to cars.

A majority of voters in the Sunset District, the neighborhood closest to the Great Highway, opposed the proposition, which passed with 54% of the vote in returns released Saturday afternoon.

Engardio, a moderate, became the first person in 20 years to unseat a previously elected incumbent supervisor when he defeated progressive Gordan Mar for the District 4 seat in 2022. Some of his constituents said he has lost their vote when he comes up for reelection in 2026.

“I don’t know who he’s representing, but he’s certainly not representing us and that infuriates me,” said Albert Chow, a Sunset resident and president of People of Parkside Sunset, a merchants association and neighborhood group. Chow said 75% of his organization’s membership opposed Proposition K.

Asked about Engardio’s political future, Chow said, “I don’t think he has one.”

Engardio was one of five city supervisors, with the support of Mayor London Breed, to propose putting Prop K on the ballot in June. For the past three years, a section of the city’s westernmost coastal boulevard, an area between Lincoln Way and Sloat Boulevard known as the Upper Great Highway, has been closed to cars on weekends as part of a pilot program scheduled to end on Dec. 31, 2025. 

Prop K’s passage will make those pilot closures permanent and extend them around the clock.

Results of Tuesday’s election show a stark divide along San Francisco’s east-west lines, with western precincts largely voting against Prop K and nearly every eastern precinct favoring it. In the Sunset, at least 60% of voters opposed the measure in most precincts, with close to 70% opposing it in some areas.

Engardio has argued that voters citywide deserved to weigh in on the proposition, which expands the city’s recreational opportunities for pedestrians, joggers, bicyclists and skateboarders. The measure’s passage opens the door to a potential Great Highway Park, though it’s just the first step in what will probably be a lengthy public process of securing necessary approvals — and funding.

But some Sunset residents said putting Prop K on the ballot was an effort to offset local opposition, with many concerned the permanent closure will increase commute times and saddle the neighborhood with congestion and noise pollution.

“I am very disappointed, upset, that (Engardio) bypassed the entire district and silenced us with a citywide vote,” said Selena Chu, who lives blocks away from the Great Highway. “I’m definitely not going to vote for him again in 2026.”

Chu said she spent hours campaigning for Engardio in 2022 but that after his support for Prop K, she would favor a recall effort.

“I think if the recall comes, that’s karma for him,” Chu said. “He said the citywide vote is democratic … so maybe another election to vote on his fate is fair and democratic.”

The Upper Great Highway attracts bicyclists and pedestrians in September during its closure during a pilot program. On Tuesday, voters approved the permanent car ban on a 2-mile stretch of the Great Highway.

In a statement posted on X Friday, Engardio reiterated his support for the measure but acknowledged that a majority of Sunset residents voted against it, adding that opponents have “valid concerns.”

But Engardio said giving residents on the east side of the city a voice was unavoidable. After a years-long battle between both sides over the Great Highway’s fate, a definitive resolution was needed, either through a ballot measure or a Board of Supervisors vote, he said.

Engardio promised to engage with both opponents and proponents during the implementation process.

“The Sunset is united — including both supporters and opponents of Prop K — in wanting safe residential streets and better traffic flow,” Engardio said on X. “We can work on this together as the park is planned, and I’m committed to ensuring the implementation of Prop K goes as smoothly as possible for the Sunset.”

Engardio did not immediately return a call asking for comment Saturday.

Sunset residents who supported the proposition cheered Engardio.

“The idea that opponents of Prop K are upset about Joel Engardio misunderstands that what they’re upset about is a democratic outcome,” Lucas Lux, board president of pro-K group Friends of Great Highway Park, told the Chronicle. “The coast is a special place that belongs to all San Franciscans, and every person should have an equal voice.”

State Sen. Scott Wiener defended Engardio from political heat on X on Saturday, calling him an “extraordinary Supervisor.” 

“Agree or disagree with Prop K, the ocean front belongs to everyone & voters have spoken,” Wiener said. “Many of us have Joel’s back.”

Nonetheless, some Sunset residents said Engardio’s lost their backing.

Vin Budhai, who founded the anti-K group Open the Great Highway, said Engardio could do nothing to regain his trust.

“There’s a lot of community leaders he could have spoken to. … Instead, he decided to blindside all of us,” Budhai said. “How can you trust someone like that again?”

Rob's comment:

All politics may not be local, contrary to Tip O'Neill's wisdom. But when you represent a district in San Francisco, voters in that district are going to agree with O'Neill. 

People in District 4 probably didn't know or care what Engardio thinks about national and international issues, but they cared about Proposition K that significantly re-designs how that district faces the ocean.

He must also understand now, apparently without knowing there was serious opposition in his district and citywide, voting with other supervisors to put Proposition K on the ballot was a mistake.

I posted about Engardio earlier in his career: Tunnel Visions, Joel Engardio: Man in a bubble, and Joel Engardio: "Moderate."