Nov. 3 election bonanza decided dozens of federal, state and local races
Democrats will hold their majority in the House of Representatives, and Joe Biden was elected President. Two Georgia Senate races will head to a January runoff
Most ballot measures in San Francisco won handily, while several closely-watched state measures failed
San Francisco headed to the polls on Nov. 3 for one of the most consequential elections in recent history.
The presidency, Congress, and a number of state and local ballot measures were on the table in Tuesday's election, but voting in many areas of the country kicked off weeks ago, and accounting for historically high turnout and mail-in ballots, final results in some state and local races are still forthcoming.
The SF Department of Elections reported that 85% of registered San Francisco voters cast a ballot this year.
Results as of 11:00 AM PST on Nov. 13.
Presidency of the United States
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were elected President and Vice President, with the Associated Press calling the race on Saturday morning after the Democratic ticket was projected to win Pennsylvania. Biden is expected to win the popular vote by several million votes when all results are tabulated, and vowed a new direction for the United States after a tumultuous four years marked by division, acrimony and a deadly pandemic that has killed more than 230,000 Americans.
United States Senate
Neither party secured a majority in the Senate, with Republicans holding 50 seats and Democrats securing 48 seats after all races were called. Two Senate races in Georgia will head to runoff elections in January after no candidate secured the necessary 50% threshold to win. That election will determine Democratic lawmakers' leverage under a Biden administration, and may shape the direction of key legislative initiatives like COVID-19 relief.
United States House of Representatives
The Democrats retained their majority in the House, though they lost several seats and are expected to have a narrower majority. In U.S. House of Representatives District 12, House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi will keep her seat, having beat challenger Shahid Buttar with about 80% of the vote. In District 13, Rep. Barbara Lee was reelected handily with 91% of votes. Rep. Jackie Speier, facing challenger Ran S. Petel in District 14, was reelected with about 82% of the vote.
California State Senate
In District 11, spanning parts of San Francisco and San Mateo Counties, State Sen. Scott Wiener beat Jackie Fielder with roughly 60% of the vote.
California State Assembly
In the California State Assembly, incumbents easily won reelection with David Chiu (District 17) and Phil Ting (District 19) winning with 90% and 80% of the vote respectively.
San Francisco Board of Education
The leading contenders for Board of Education were incumbents Jenny Lam and Board President Mark Sanchez, along with newcomers Kevine Boggess, an education policy director, and Matt Alexander, a former SFUSD principal, as of Friday.
San Francisco Community College Board
As of Friday, the top candidates for Community College Board by total votes were incumbents Shanell Williams (18%) and Tom Temprano (17%). Newcomers Aliya Christi, Alan Wong and Anita Martinez each had over 10% of votes, and are competing for two remaining open seats.
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Directors
For District 9, Bevan Dufty came in at 67% of the vote versus challenger David Wei Wen Young at 18.5%. In District 7, Lateefah Simon was elected with 69% of the vote versus 30% for Sharon Kidd.
San Francisco Board of Supervisors
Only odd-numbered districts were up for election this year, including two seats that were up for grabs.
In District 1, Connie Chan narrowly beat Marjan Philhour by just over 100 votes.
In District 3, incumbent Sup. Aaron Peskin beat challenger Danny Sauter, at 58% and 42% of total vote tallies respectively. In District 5, incumbent Sup. Dean Preston won reelection at 55% of the vote total versus Vallie Brown's 45%.
In District 7, the most competitive district race, Myrna Melgar had 53% of total votes accounting for ranked-choice conversions, topping Joel Engardio's 47%. Engardio conceded the race on Wednesday.
In District 9, Sup. Hillary Ronen had no challenger and will be reelected. In District 11, incumbent Sup. Ahsha Safai had a comfortable margin at 54% of votes versus John Avalos' 46%. Avalos previously served two terms as District 11 supervisor.
California Ballot Propositions
Voters rejected numerous statewide ballot measures, which spanned property tax reform, criminal justice reform and youth voting.
Proposition 14, authorizing bonds for stem cell research, was approved with 51% of votes.
Proposition 15, which would change the tax structure for commercial and industrial properties, and direct funds towards school and local services, was rejected with 52% voting no on the measure.
Proposition 16, to repeal a prohibition on considering race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public education, hiring contracting, was rejected with 56% voting no on the measure.
Proposition 17, restoring a right to vote after completion of a prison term, was approved with 59% of votes.
Proposition 18, which would allow 17-year-olds to vote in primaries and special elections provided they become eligible to vote by the general election, was rejected with 55% voting no.
Proposition 19, which would change property tax structure for older and property homeowners, was approved with 51% voting yes.
Proposition 20, restricting parole for some offenses considered non-violent, and authorizing felony sentences for some offenses considered misdemeanors, was rejected with 62% voting no.
Proposition 21, which would expand local governments' authority to enact rent control on residences over 15 years old, was rejected with 60% voting no.
Proposition 22, exempting app-based transportation and delivery companies, such as Uber and Lyft, from providing benefits to drivers, was approved with 58% of votes.
Proposition 23, establishing state requirements for kidney dialysis clinics, was rejected with 64% voting no.
Proposition 24, which would make state consumer privacy laws more restrictive, was approved with 56% of votes.
Proposition 25, replacing cash bail with an evaluation system based on public safety and flight risks, was rejected with 55% of voting no.
San Francisco Ballot Propositions
Proposition A, authorizing a bond intended for supportive housing, homelessness, and parks, was approved with 71% of votes.
Proposition B, to create a Department of Sanitation and Streets with oversight from a Sanitation and Streets Commission, was approved with 60% of votes.
Proposition C, which would remove a requirement that people serving on city boards, commissions and advisory bodies be citizens and old enough to vote, was approved with 54% voting yes.
Proposition D, an amendment to create a Sheriff’s Department Office of Inspector General and a Sheriff’s Department Oversight Board, was approved with 67% of votes.
Proposition E, which would amend the City charter to remove a minimum staffing level of 1,971 for San Francisco Police Department, was approved with 72% of votes.
Proposition F, overhauling the business tax structure for companies doing business in San Francisco, was approved with 68% of votes.
Proposition G, allowing 16-year-olds to vote in local elections, was rejected with 50.9% voting no. It required a simple majority to pass.
Proposition H, changing the planning code to expedite permits and increase permissible uses for small businesses, was approved with 61% of votes.
Proposition I, which permanently increases the transfer tax rate on sales and leases real estate valued at over $10 million, was approved with 58% of votes.
Proposition J, replacing the 2018 parcel tax for SFUSD with a new tax that changes the annual tax rate from $320 per parcel to $288 per parcel, was approved with 75% of votes. It needed a two-thirds majority to pass.
Proposition K, which "authorizes" the City to develop, construct, acquire or rehabilitate up to 10,000 units of low-income rental housing, was approved with 74% of votes.
Proposition L, which levies an additional tax on companies with a wide pay disparity between the median employee and top executives, was approved with 65% of votes.
Proposition RR, authorizing a one-eighth per cent sales tax to fund Caltrain operations, was approved with 74% of the vote. The measure required 66.6% of votes to pass.
