San Francisco Board of Supervisors
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The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is the legislature of San Francisco, California.
Contents |
[edit] Government and politics
As the official name implies, the City and County of San Francisco is a consolidated city-county, being simultaneously a charter city and charter county with a consolidated government, a status it has had since 1856. It is the only such consolidation in California and the only California county with a mayor who is also the county executive. San Francisco is the only California city with a board of supervisors, which is also the city council.
[edit] Election
| Supervisors (by district) | |
| 1 | Jake McGoldrick |
| 2 | Michela Alioto-Pier |
| 3 | Aaron Peskin |
| 4 | Ed Jew |
| 5 | Ross Mirkarimi |
| 6 | Chris Daly |
| 7 | Sean Elsbernd |
| 8 | Bevan Dufty |
| 9 | Tom Ammiano |
| 10 | Sophie Maxwell |
| 11 | Gerardo Sandoval |
The 11 members of the Board of Supervisors (as of January 2005) are listed in the table at right by district number. [1] The current president of the Board is Aaron Peskin, who represents District 3.
How the Board of Supervisors shall be elected has been a bone of contention in recent San Francisco history. Throughout the United States, almost all cities and counties with populations in excess of 20,000 divide the jurisdiction into electoral districts (in cities, often called "wards") to ensure proportionate representation of the whole community and to evenly distribute the community interaction workload among the members of the governing body (city council, county board of supervisors, etc.). But California has always been disinclined to follow examples set by the rest of the country; and San Francisco, notwithstanding a population of over 700,000 has been no exception.
Prior to 1977 and again from 1980 through 2000, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors was elected at large. All candidates appeared together on the ballot. The person who received the most votes was elected President of the Board of Supervisors, and the next ten were elected to seats on the board. The first district-based elections in 1977 resulted in a radical change to the composition of the Board, including the election of Harvey Milk, only the third openly gay or lesbian individual (and the first who was male) elected to public office in the United States. Following the assassinations of Supervisor Milk and Mayor George Moscone a year later, by Supervisor Dan White who had just resigned, district elections were deemed divisive and San Francisco returned to at-large elections until the current system was implemented in 2000.
Under the current system, Supervisors are elected by district to four-year terms. The terms are staggered so that only half the board is elected every two years, thereby providing continuity. Supervisors representing odd-numbered districts (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11) are elected every fourth year counted from 2000 (so, 2000, 2004, 2008, etc.). Supervisors representing even-numbered districts (2, 4, 6, 8, and 10) were elected to transitional two-year terms in 2000, thereafter to be elected every fourth year (2002, 2006, 2010, etc.). The next election is scheduled for November 4, 2008.
The President of the Board of Supervisors, under the new system, is elected by the members of the Board from among their number. This is typically done at the first meeting of the new session commencing after the general election.
In the November 7, 2006 election, Supervisor Fiona Ma chose not to seek reelection in District 4, having won the Democratic nomination for California State Assembly District 12. Ed Jew was elected to fill her seat, winning from a field of six candidates, including one supported by Ma and another supported by Mayor Gavin Newsom. All other Board of Supervisor elections were won by incumbents.
[edit] Districts
Members of the Board of Supervisor are elected from eleven single-member districts. The districts cover the following neighborhoods, approximately.
| District | Supervisor | Neighborhoods |
| 1 | McGoldrick | Inner Richmond, Central Richmond, Outer Richmond, Vista del Mar, Lone Mountain, Golden Gate Park, Lincoln Park, University of San Francisco |
| 2 | Alioto-Pier | Marina, Cow Hollow, Pacific Heights, Seacliff, Lake District, Presidio Heights, Jordan Park, Laurel Heights, Presidio, Russian Hill (part) |
| 3 | Peskin | North Beach, Telegraph Hill, North Waterfront, Financial District, Nob Hill, Russian Hill (part) |
| 4 | Jew | Central Sunset, Outer Sunset, Parkside, Outer Parkside, Pine Lake Park |
| 5 | Mirkarimi | Inner Sunset, Haight Ashbury, Haight Fillmore, Fillmore, Western Addition, Parnassus Heights, North Panhandle, Anza Vista, Lower Pacific Heights, Japantown, Hayes Valley (part), Ashbury Heights (part), UCSF (part) |
| 6 | Daly | Union Square, Tenderloin, Civic Center, Cathedral Hill, South of Market, South Beach, Mission Bay, North Mission, Treasure Island, Yerba Buena Island, Hayes Valley (part) |
| 7 | Elsbernd | Inner Parkside, Golden Gate Heights, Clarendon Heights, Twin Peaks, Forest Knolls, Midtown Terrace, Forest Hill, Miraloma Park, Sunnyside, Sherwood Forest, Westwood Highlands, Westwood Park, St. Francis Wood, Monterey Heights, Mt. Davidson, Balboa Terrace, Ingleside Terrace, Stonestown, Lakeside, Lake Shore, Merced Manor, ParkMerced, Lake Merced, City College, San Francisco State, Ashbury Heights (part), Parnassus Heights (part), UCSF (part) |
| 8 | Dufty | Castro, Noe Valley, Diamond Heights, Glen Park, Corona Heights, Eureka Valley, Dolores Heights, Mission Dolores, Duboce Triangle, Buena Vista Park |
| 9 | Ammiano | Mission District, Bernal Heights, Peralta Heights |
| 10 | Maxwell | Potrero Hill, Central Waterfront, Dogpatch, Bayview, Bayview Heights, Hunter's Point, India Basin, Silver Terrace, Candlestick Point, Apparel City, Bret Harte, Portola, Visitacion Valley, Little Hollywood, Sunnydale, McLaren Park |
| 11 | Sandoval | Excelsior, Ingleside, Oceanview, Merced Heights, Ingleside Heights, Mission Terrace, Outer Mission, Cayuga, Crocker Amazon |
[edit] See also
- Members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors (historical list)
[edit] External links
| San Francisco Board of Supervisors |  |
|---|---|
| McGoldrick • Alioto-Pier • Peskin • Jew • Mirkarimi • Daly • Elsbernd • Dufty • Ammiano • Maxwell • Sandoval |
