Nancy Pelosi's exit opens way for tough fight to replace her in San Francisco district

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi ’s decision to step aside after nearly four decades in Congress kicks off a wide-open contest to replace her at a time when her home city of San Francisco is roiled in debate about the cost of living and what its future should look like.

Pelosi announced Thursday that she will not seek reelection next year, bookending a career that saw her become the first woman in the speaker’s chair and one of the most powerful Democrats of her era in Washington.

The race to replace her is unfolding at a time when her deeply Democratic and famously liberal district — which encompasses virtually all of San Francisco — is contending with soaring housing costs and conflict over whether denser development is the answer to them. Republicans account for a mere 7% of voters.

Not surprisingly, the website for Democratic candidate and former tech executive Saikat Chakrabarti is headlined, “We can fix this.”

“The median home in our city now costs $1.4 million — far more than any middle-class family can afford,” he says.

San Francisco-based Democratic consultant Eric Jaye says that for voters, “Affordability is at the top of the list” in the city of 830,000 people.

There’s an ongoing debate for older residents and new alike — and a lot of anxiety — over “what are we going to be in the future?” Jaye says. With an influx of artificial intelligence and other tech workers and streams of global capital flowing in, “Who is going to get to stay?”

The 85-year-old Pelosi has been facing pressure for years from a younger generation of Democrats to move aside. Her announcement came after two leading candidates didn’t wait and entered the contest: Chakrabarti, a former chief of staff for Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener, who is known for his advocacy for denser development.

With Pelosi’s announcement, other notable candidates are expected to join the contest. The list of possible contenders includes her daughter, attorney and Democratic Party activist Christine Pelosi, who observers have long speculated could follow her mother to Congress. She did not return phone or text messages Thursday.

Wiener is a fixture in San Francisco politics — he's represented the city in the state Senate since 2016, and earlier was a member of the Board of Supervisors. He's known for taking stands on thorny issues, including transgender rights and housing development. He pushed a proposal — approved this year — that permits taller apartment buildings near transit hubs, even over the resistance of local officials.

But his advocacy for dense housing has also earned him critics: He's “very popular with some constituencies and, frankly, very unpopular with others,” Jaye says. If Wiener wins, he would be the first openly gay person to represent San Francisco in Congress.

There are easy comparisons to be made between Chakrabarti and New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist who won a stunning victory this week. Chakrabarti worked for Bernie Sanders in 2016, who backed Mamdani, as did Ocasio-Cortez. Chakrabarti's parents came from India, as did Mamdani's parents.

His agenda checks a list of progressive priorities, including Medicare-for-all. Jaye says Chakrabarti is positioning himself as “the progressive candidate, the generational candidate.” A wealthy, founding engineer at payments processing company Stripe, Chakrabarti says he and his volunteers will knock on every door in the district.

Another name often mentioned as a potential candidate is Connie Chan, a progressive who serves on the Board of Supervisors. Jaye says she could bring powerful voter groups with her to the contest, including influential labor unions. She was born in Hong Kong and would likely draw strong support from the city's large Asian-American community. As a woman, she would stand out from Chakrabarti and Wiener.

In another historical marker, Chan or Chakrabarti, if elected, would be the first person of Asian descent to represent the district.

The contest in the heavily Democratic district will play out during the national fight for House control in the 2026 midterm elections. Republicans hold a 219-213 majority in the House, with three vacancies.

President Donald Trump will inevitably color the campaign, even though he is not on the ballot in 2026. Wiener's website is headlined, “Scott has the courage to stand up to Trump,” and Chakrabarti warns, “Authoritarianism is winning because the American dream is failing.”

Still, housing costs are likely to dominate the race.

“Density will be the No. 1 issue,” says California State University, San Francisco, political scientist Jason McDaniel. The campaign will showcase “dueling visions of how to solve that affordability ... issue.”