The San Francisco Democratic Party deadlocked 11-11 and took no position on the Sept. 16 recall of District 4 Supervisor Joel Engardio. Six members abstained and four were absent, including three who might have opposed the recall: Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, Michela Alioto-Pier and Assemblymember Matt Haney. Four progressives abstained, Jane Kim was absent, and Gordon Mar voted "no endorsement"; Assemblymember Catherine Stefani and Michael Lai also abstained. Moderates expected Engardio to prevail but unreturned proxies and absences produced the tie. Party chair Nancy Tung announced there was no majority and the crowd, largely recall supporters, cheered. Over 7,000 ballots had already been cast ahead of the election.
The San Francisco Democratic Party deadlocked 11-11 and took no position on the recall of District 4 Supervisor Joel Engardio. Six members abstained from the vote and four were absent - leaving Engardio, once an ally of the ascendant moderate Democrats steering the party, out in the cold. The tie and resultant "no endorsement" came as a surprise to vote-counters on both the pro- and anti-recall side, who were anticipating the county Democratic Party, dominated by political moderates, would narrowly side with the moderate Engardio.
Gordon Mar was the sole progressive to cast a vote, and he opted for "no endorsement." Assemblymember Catherine Stefani and Michael Lai joined the progressive bloc in abstaining. With progressives - John Avalos, Connie Chan, Peter Gallotta and Michael Trung Nguyen - largely abstaining as a bloc, it was expected that Engardio would narrowly prevail. Abstentions reduce the total number of votes, which reduces the number of votes required to reach a simple majority. But the vote still ended in a draw.
"There is no majority for any position, the party remains in 'no position,'" party chair Nancy Tung announced following the 9:38 p.m. vote. The remaining crowd at the Ruth Williams Bayview Opera House, almost all recall supporters, cheered. Crucially, three party members who could've potentially voted to spurn the recall were absent from the meeting: Supervisor Bilal Mahmood, Michela Alioto-Pier and Assemblymember Matt Haney.
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