After Matt
The District Five race fills up quickly – and some fear division on the left

By Steven T. Jones and Tim Redmond

Sup. Matt Gonzalez dropped the political equivalent of a thermonuclear bomb March 28 with his announcement that he won't seek a second term – and the fallout had the already fractured San Francisco left scrambling to avoid an electoral bloodbath.

At least three Green Party members and three progressive Democrats could wind up battling for the right to succeed the city's highest-ranking Green in one of the most left-leaning legislative districts in the country.

No matter how the race shakes out, it's likely there will be several candidates seeking money, endorsements, and political energy from the progressive community at a time when liberal political resources will already be stretched thin in other district races.

The lineup at press time looked like this:

Ross Mirkarimi, a longtime Green Party leader and public power activist, told the Bay Guardian he was seriously considering entering the race. Gonzalez, who told us he would like to see another Green succeed him, said Mirkarimi would be on his short list for endorsement. So would Lisa Feldstein, a housing and labor activist, planning commissioner, and Green. Green County Council member Susan King also told us she's considering running.

Robert Haaland, a tenant and labor organizer and former president of the Harvey Milk Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Club, quickly announced his candidacy and will hold a formal kickoff this weekend. Haaland, a member of the Democratic County Central Committee, told us he has the endorsements of Sup. Aaron Peskin, former supervisor Harry Britt, and San Francisco Tenants Union leader Ted Gullicksen. Democrat Dan Kalb, an environmental activist who works for the Union of Concerned Scientists, told us he's running. Bill Barnes, an aide to Sup. Chris Daly and a candidate for the DCCC chair, told us he's also thinking of tossing his hat in the supervisorial ring.

Democrat Michael O'Connor, a Small Business Commission member and owner of the Independent nightclub (and a close friend of Daly) told us he was thinking of challenging Gonzalez and will definitely run now. Jim Siegel, a landlord and owner of Distractions, also plans to enter the race. His store was one of the few on Haight Street to sport Newsom for Mayor signs, but Siegel seems to have liberal values and told us his choice for mayor was made out of frustration with Gonzalez for failing to support his neighborhood preservation efforts. Deputy district attorney Jim Hammer's name has also been dropped as a possible candidate.

Four additional candidates have taken out papers to run: Joe Blue, Tys Sniffen, Vivian Wilder, and Robert Anderson. There are plenty of others who may decide to join the fray in the next week or two.

It's a very different situation from four years ago, when Gonzalez, running with the support of Sup. Tom Ammiano, then president of the Board of Supervisors, effectively cleared the field and became the consensus progressive candidate running against a Brown-machine loyalist.

Gonzalez told us he had been thinking for at least a month about leaving the board at the end of this term and has had several discussions with close allies about the prospect. "We spent a lot of time trying to talk him out of this, and we thought we had prevailed," Mirkarimi said.

King said the decision "was completely unexpected, and I'm completely disappointed." She said that she wants to keep a Green on the board and that she'll make a decision on running after speaking with Mirkarimi and Feldstein, both of whom she considers "strong candidates" that she wouldn't run against.

While the progressives are duking it out, it's likely at least one moderate will run with the backing of Mayor Gavin Newsom, whose operatives may see this as an opportunity to put in play a seat that was considered a virtual lock for the progressives. Daly says he isn't worried Newsom's camp will take the seat. "I think the good news is that there are several folks in District Five who are qualified," he told us.

Still, some progressive leaders are concerned about the potential for damaging infighting. "It would be great if the progressives could sit down and land on one candidate, but that's unlikely," Ammiano said.

Peskin was more blunt: "We have to remember that ultimately this is a team effort and make sure all our resources aren't spent in a fight among like-minded progressives in District Five."

E-mail Steven T. Jones and Tim Redmond