Scott Wiener, Connie Chan appear as top two for race to replace Nancy Pelosi

In the waning minutes of Election Day in California, State Sen. Scott Wiener and San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan look likely to advance to the general election to replace House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi as San Francisco’s representative in Congress.

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They are two of three major Democratic candidates that jumped into the highly competitive race to replace the retiring Pelosi, with tech millionaire Saikat Chakrabarti being the third.

Wiener, 56, a well-known state legislator and poster child for the pro-housing YIMBY movement, secured 41% of the vote, according to live results from the San Francisco Department of Elections. Chan received almost 29% of the vote, while Chakrabarti was trailing behind at almost 15% as of 11:50 p.m. Tuesday. The New York Times estimated that about 50% of expected votes had been tallied.

Wiener addressed supporters in San Francisco shortly after 9 p.m., seeming confident that he would make it to the general election.

“They’re still counting, but these initial results are very promising,” Wiener said during an election night party at his campaign office in San Francisco’s Castro neighborhood. “We’ve always known that no matter who the competition will be that it would be a competitive race. … Right now, it looks like Supervisor Chan is in a pretty strong second place, and I look forward to conversation with her. She and I are very different.”

Wiener built a reputation in Sacramento as a skilled lawmaker successfully passing laws reshaping transit and housing, including reforming the California Environmental Quality Act to reduce bureaucratic red-tape and expedite construction. He earned critical endorsements from top Democrats in Sacramento, labor groups, and the California Democratic Party.

Chan, 47, represents District 1 on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. She built support among organized labor while emphasizing affordability, public services and neighborhood concerns in her campaign. Chan has struggled to raise money, however, and had only  $70,000 in the bank, according to a final pre-election filing. Chan entered the race in November, months after Chakrabarti. If she advances to November, it would be a triumph for her, having secured a last-minute endorsement from Pelosi.

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Chakrabarti, 40, is a centi-millionaire who poured in about $10 million of his own money into his campaign. He put on a vibrant campaign, recruiting eager volunteers –– many of whom were young voters –– and even garnered support from Hasan Piker, a Twitch streamer beloved by leftists, and other progressives such as Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York and Rep. Ilhan Ohmar of Minnesota.

This election is the beginning of the end of Pelosi’s 40-year rule. The congresswoman was first elected in 1987 and spent the following decades forging policy on gay marriage, ushering forward the Affordable Care Act, and serving as the country’s first and only female speaker of the House. She took the powerful position for the first time in 2007 and for the second time in 2019, making her a bulwark against President Donald Trump during his first term.

The congresswoman decided to retire at the end of last year, setting the stage for a competitive race.