Lurie-backed candidates win key San Francisco primary races

The next question for San Francisco residents is not who won, but what these wins will change in the next 6 to 12 months: more support for housing approvals, faster spending on emergency response, and fewer roadblocks for Daniel Lurie’s City Hall agenda. Lurie’s endorsed candidates all came out ahead on June 2, giving the mayor a clean showing in the races that mattered most to his coalition.

Phoebe Maffei won the contest for Superior Court Judge Seat 16, Stephen Sherrill held District 2, and Alan Wong led District 4. The San Francisco Democratic Party had lined up behind the same three candidates, along with Yes on A, Yes on B, No on C and No on D. That alignment matters in a city where the 11-member Board of Supervisors sets policy and where court and ballot races can shape how quickly City Hall moves on housing, public safety and downtown recovery.

Turnout was still thin. San Francisco reported 125,086 ballots cast out of 533,546 registered voters, for 23.44% turnout, with about 122,400 ballots left to count after election night. Even so, the early numbers pointed to clear wins. Sherrill defeated Lori Brooke with 69.71% of the vote, while Wong led a five-candidate District 4 field with 49.73% in first-choice results before ranked-choice tabulation finished. The Department of Elections said the count remained preliminary pending certification.

The two supervisor races also carried a larger political message. Sherrill was appointed in December 2024 by former Mayor London Breed after Catherine Stefani left for the state Assembly. Wong was appointed by Lurie in December 2025 after voters recalled Joel Engardio. Both men will serve through January 2027 and will face voters again in November 2026 for full four-year terms, making these seats a short runway before another expensive round of campaigning.

The policy stakes were just as clear. Sherrill and Wong both voted in December 2025 for a Lurie-backed rezoning plan that raised height limits from four stories to six or eight stories across much of the city, tying their victories to the mayor’s housing agenda. GrowSF said it planned to spend at least $250,000 in support of both candidates, underscoring how much money is now flowing into the city’s development fights.

Voters also backed Lurie’s broader ballot posture. Proposition A, the Emergency Response Bond, passed with 76.78% yes. Measure B on lifetime term limits passed with 54.98% yes. Propositions C and D, the competing business-tax measures, failed. Taken together, the results showed a city still divided on taxes and growth, but one that gave Lurie a stronger base to press ahead with his public safety and government-reform agenda.