At a crowded West Portal news conference, former supervisor, state senator, and Judge Quentin Kopp blasted District 4 supervisorial candidate Natalie Gee for accepting the endorsement of Lucas Lux. Lux led the campaign to close the Great Highway in favor of a beachfront park, the Sunset Dunes. Gee is running in the June 2 special election against incumbent Supervisor Alan Wong, educator David Lee, Taraval business leader Albert Chow, and campus coordinator Jeremy Greco.
Kopp, who represented many of the District 4 neighborhoods for 15 years as a district or citywide supervisor, questioned how Gee could maintain her stated support for reopening the Great Highway, in disagreement with Lux, yet still accept his endorsement.
Gee, reached for comment by The Voice of San Francisco, responded that it was “absurd to say I made a deal” and that the endorsement demonstrated her ability “to bring people together with people who disagree with me.”
Kopp reminded attendees that the recall of former Supervisor Joel Engardio was almost entirely based on Engardio’s efforts, supported by Lux, to close the Great Highway permanently in favor of a park. In 2024, Sunset District 4 voters opposed the permanent closure by a 64 percent to 36 percent margin but were overwhelmed by voters in the other districts. Kopp described the Engardio/Lux departure from what had been a compromise to keep the road open on weekends “a vexing issue, so unnecessary.”
Kopp charged that Gee’s acceptance of the Lux endorsement called into question her promise to support the compromise after she “built [her] entire campaign on that promise.”
Kopp went on to put the issue in the broader context of governance at City Hall. “Why have district election of supervisors if you have in office someone who ignores the neighborhood? How can we rely with trust on a candidate who is part of an effort of an insult removing a main thoroughfare of the people they will represent?”
Gee issued a statement today trying to put the issue to rest. In her view, “being [s]upervisor means representing everyone in our district.” She criticized “the type of toxic politics that keeps our community divided, pitting neighbors against each other” and stressed that “this campaign has always been about love for our community. …”
Kopp contrasted Gee with his choice, candidate David Lee, “a true San Franciscan and bona fide representative to defend the interests of Sunset residents.” Sunset District voters are now casting their ballots in the 30-day election window leading up to the June 2 primary. That election will be decided by ranked-choice voting, but it will not end the discussion or the rancor. Supervisor Wong and candidates Gee and Lee have already registered to run for the same seat in the November general election for a full four-year term.
Meanwhile, Sunset District residents and other San Francisco voters are now circulating petitions to place “The Great Highway for Everyone Act” on that same November ballot to reinstate the compromise.
