THIS WEEK AT THE VOICE FOR THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2026
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by Mike Ege
Editor in chief, The Voice of San Francisco
The race for District 10 supervisor, already the one race this November with the biggest cast of characters, could be spicing up as longtime neighborhood peace activist Shawn Richard may soon catch up with frontrunners Theo Ellington and DJ Brookter.
Richard is best known as the founder of Brothers Against Guns, a longtime anti-gun violence and violence-prevention organization. He founded the group in 1995 as part of a turnaround in his life prompted by the killing of his brother, and it became one of San Francisco’s more visible grassroots anti-gun violence groups in the mid-1990s.
While he has yet to amass the press and political buckage that Ellington and Brookter have, campaign insiders have told us that he has several aces in the hole: one is his high name recognition in the community; another is a bevy of contacts in the community other candidates do not have; and still another is high-profile endorsements … like former mayor and political legend Willie Brown.
Brown confirmed to us Wednesday, as he was heading to that night’s fundraiser for congressional candidate Connie Chan at Julius Castle on Telegraph Hill, that he’s endorsed Richard, along with Ellington and Brookter, but is leaving the ranking up to D10 voters.
Another recognizable endorsement is from Angela Alioto, the veteran San Francisco political doyenne, former Board of Supervisors president and daughter of former mayor Joe Alioto.
Speaking to us at a campaign event downtown last week, Alioto said, “I’ve known Shawn for a little more than 30 years,” recalling working with him in the 1990s. “He’s a doer, and that’s what we need, especially in District 10.”
Now, she said, she plans to campaign for him actively.
“I’m gonna walk. I’m gonna be out there knocking on doors,” she said. “I’m excited about it.”
Speaking of Connie Chan: As Politico recently reported, the race between the Richmond supervisor and state Senator Scott Wiener has become yet another sectarian conflict among Bay Area Democrats, with things turning nasty over campaign tactics like Scott Wiener’s Connie Chan chatbot fiasco. It’s well worth remembering that in San Francisco politics, any gaffe that can summon mixed signals or get garbled in language barriers will be leveraged.
Case in point: in 2015, then-District 3 Supervisor Julie Christensen, appointed to the job by then-mayor Ed Lee, found herself running for election in her own right against one of her predecessors — the wily former Board President Aaron Peskin.
At an event announcing more funding to improve the Stockton Street Tunnel, she said, in an attempt to convey how important it was, “Union Square is known all over the world. Chinatown is known all over the world. … This is the wormhole that connects the two of them, and we’ve sort of left it as a transit afterthought.”
Apparently, the Chinese-language publication World Journal characterized the remark as comparing Chinatown residents to worms, and that was seized upon by Chinatown political bosses and Peskin supporters Rose Pak and Henry Der, who certainly knew better.
Der especially made an outsized molehill out of the comment, asking whether a “wormhole” meant “a hole in the dirty ground” and whether that was how Christensen wanted people to think about Chinatown.
Word traveled fast, as it always does, and explanations by Christensen were too long to matter, too little, and too late. She lost Chinatown and her District 3 seat to Peskin, who would serve for a third and fourth term, something now barred by a voter-approved ordinance.
Check out links to our latest content below, or just bookmark our homepage to see the latest.
Top News
ELECTIONS 2026
Governance, housing, and transit at stake on local initiative ballot
Not even counting the state measures, it’s a big one.
by Mike Ege
San Francisco voters are once again being handed a small novella disguised as a ballot, with 10 local measures and a regional transit measure awaiting them Nov. 3. The pile is hardly unprecedented — voters faced 15 local propositions in 2024 and 25 in 2016 — but this year’s crop makes one thing clear: this ballot is a further test of Mayor Daniel Lurie’s political coattails.
CRIME
Legacy small business, The Cove on Castro, suffers another act of vandalism
Customers step up, but city grants for damage have run dry.
by Erica Sandberg
NEWS
Congressman Mullin introduces bill to combat closure of National Archives
Community access to historical immigration and other records at stake
by John Trasviña
Quote of the week
“Honestly it’s sometimes a bit of a black box even for us as legislators … I am still trying myself to get to the bottom of it.”
— Assemblywoman Cottie Petrie-Norris on the opaque amendment process for DUI legislation, in “State’s DUI reform gutted by lawmaker arrested for DUI last year”
Nomi toon
In Case You Missed It
TRANSIT
San Francisco plans $9 million accessibility improvements for Hallidie Plaza
Plans include new ramps, seating areas, and greenery.
by Jerold Chinn
A&E
California College of the Arts show ‘Closer Reading: Three Bay Area Book Artists’
Spotlighting the area’s vibrant book arts scene.
by Sharon Anderson
A&E
Family-friendly films for fun and fantasy
‘Coyote vs. Acme’ and ‘The Magic Faraway Tree’ provide entertainment for all-ages audiences as summer wanes.
by Michael Snyder
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EVENTS
Out and about Aug. 27–Sept. 2, 2026
What to do this weekend and beyond.
By Lynette Majer
Managing Editor, The Voice of San Francisco
The universe has you covered from sunset to sunrise in the coming days, plus there are concerts, a cultural celebration, some comedy, performances, and more. Read on for some suggestions for how to spend the next several days.
Thursday, Aug. 27
The universe has an almost total eclipse of the Moon planned for you tonight. The Moon and the Sun have coordinated to be exactly opposite each other in the sky, and then Earth interrupts the party and plans to cover 96 percent of the Moon. For viewing tips and more info, visit this site from our local (retired) astronomer Andrew Fraknoi, who has an asteroid named after him. Free admission.
The Grammy Award-winning hometown band Train is having a party, and you’re invited. Love on Haight is a Mad Dog in the Fog album release block party that is sure to be a lot of fun. “You really think we’d name our album Mad Dog in the Fog and not throw a party at the bar we named it after?” Doors 3:30 p.m.; show 5 p.m. Visit the link above to RSVP (required). Free admission.
The 5th annual Expansive is a showcase of trans and nonbinary classical artists. “Revolution is Just the Beginning” is this year’s theme and honors the 60th anniversary of Compton’s Cafeteria riot, a pivotal event that shaped trans worldwide liberation movements. 7:30 p.m. at the Strand Theater. Tickets from $15.
Friday, Aug. 28
The cozy Hôtel Biron Wine Bar & Art Gallery wants to celebrate National Red Wine Day with you. Enjoy red wine from around the world and food from the new organic restaurant Veg-O-licious. The wine bar has a new photography exhibition that opened yesterday, showcasing five local photographers, so enjoy that, too. 5 p.m. (doors), 6 p.m. (party). Wine: $11; food: free.
Join journalist, political commentator, author, and podcast host Ezra Klein in conversation with journalist and author Annie Lowrey. 7:30 p.m. at the Sydney Goldstein Theater. Tickets: $64
Hear Sixth Station bring Pokémon melodies to life in Pokémon in Concert with a classical twist featuring a trio of violin, cello, and piano. Tunes from the iconic video game series will be arranged to “evoke memories of your favorite adventures.” The concert celebrates Pokémon’s 30th anniversary and coincides with the Pokémon World Championships today through Sunday in the city. 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Grace Cathedral. Tickets: $50.
Saturday, Aug. 29
The immersive exhibition, Life in Space, explores how life, whether human or extraterrestrial, might live in the extreme conditions beyond the planet. Through Sept. 13 at the Exploratorium. Tickets from $30.
See more weekend events online.
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