London Breed's popularity among Asian Americans soars as she tackles crime

San Francisco Mayor London Breed has gone from being a verbal whipping boy who failed to lead the city out of the pandemic-related crisis to a tough-on-crime candidate who is finally gaining traction with voters.

And it makes her fellow candidates very nervous.

According to a recent survey by San Francisco Chronicle.

That means Breed has outpaced her challengers and is voters' first choice in the November election. About 28 percent of likely voters surveyed between July 31 and August 5 said they either name the incumbent mayor as their first choice or would lean toward her. That's up from 18 percent in a similar poll in February.

In the February poll, Breed was in serious danger of losing to his challengers, Mark Farrell, the former mayor of San Francisco, and Daniel Lurie, the Levi Strauss heir. Twenty percent of likely voters chose Farrell as their first choice, with Breed at 18 percent. Lurie came in third with 16 percent, followed by Supervisor Ahsha Safai at 8 percent.

“People are noticing the work we're doing and responding to it,” Breed said at an event announcing the endorsement of San Francisco Sheriff Paul Miyamoto, the city's first Asian American sheriff, and other Asian American public safety leaders. “I've also been going out and campaigning a lot more.”

It seems Breed has found her rhythm, at least for now, by promising to clean up the streets and address the problem of homelessness, drugs and crime. Her latest push to clear homeless encampments falls in line with Gov. Gavin Newsom's (D-CA) recent executive order giving local officials more power to take down tents on sidewalks and in public parks.

In the first week since San Francisco began ramping up crackdowns, police issued at least 13 citations for illegally setting up tents on public property, more than in the entire previous month.

Earlier this month, Breed also ordered that homeless people must first be offered a one-way bus ticket out of the city before other services such as housing or shelter are provided.

Asian-American Vote

One group that is more satisfied with the development are Asian Americans.

In February, they gave Breed the worst approval ratings of any racial group. Eighty percent of Asian American voters disapproved of her performance, 19 percent were satisfied with her, and a measly 10 percent said they wanted her as their first choice.

In the latest poll of 804 likely voters, Breed's disapproval rating fell to 57 percent, while her approval rating rose to 43 percent.

Josephine Zhao, president of the Chinese American Democratic Club, believes Breed's improved position is due to the mayor's increased public safety efforts.

“She sends frequent messages about how she's working with the SFPD to give them more opportunities to enforce the law and to support the SFPD's budget for hiring more officers, retaining officers, as well as recruiting retiring officers. I think those are messages that people want to hear,” Zhao told the outlet.

Breed also traveled the world to secure a pair of pandas for the San Francisco Zoo, an effort that received strong support and praise from the city's Chinese-American activists. During her trip, she also called on officials to restore many of the direct flights from China to San Francisco International Airport that had been canceled during the pandemic.

Nationally, Asian Americans often have to fight to get noticed by politicians in election years because there are too few of them. But in San Francisco, people of Chinese descent make up more than a fifth of the population, making them a key demographic in November's election that can influence the outcome.

Ding Lee, former president of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association, said in the past, mayoral candidates have stopped by the association's historic building in Chinatown for a photo shoot and stayed for 15 minutes at most.

“Today, they almost never turn down an invitation and stay for the whole event,” Lee told the New York Times“They know that the Chinese electorate now has a lot of influence.”

Breed's campaign has been reaching out to potential voters through WeChat, a popular Chinese social messaging platform. Other mayoral candidates have recruited local Chinese leaders to play key roles in the campaign this year.

Candidates Breed, Safai and Aron Peskin, president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors who announced his candidacy for mayor in April, have deep-rooted ties to the Chinese community. Peskin and Safai's districts have large Chinese populations.

Chinese voters don't know Farrell and Lurie as well, although both have turned to Chinese American activists in the region for help. Farrell hired Jade Tu, a 28-year-old community organizer who played a key role in the 2022 recall of left-wing District Attorney Chesa Boudin, as his campaign manager.

Voting measures

Voters also seem to agree with Breed's tougher stance on crime and accountability.

They supported two of her ballot proposals earlier this year, which addressed policing and bringing businesses back into a hollowed-out downtown area. The proposals were a difficult pivot for the Democratic mayor, but one that paid off with San Francisco residents.

One measure would expand police powers, while another would require welfare recipients to undergo drug testing and treatment if they wanted to continue receiving financial assistance.

homelessness

The problem of homelessness is a sensitive issue for Democrats in San Francisco, and Breed's “tough love” approach is becoming increasingly vitriolic.

According to the Bay Area Council's 2022 poll, 86% of voters say homelessness has only gotten worse in recent years and want something done. Some voters have reached their “breaking point” on the issue, claiming homelessness has destroyed communities and cost the city hundreds of millions of dollars with little to no impact.

Breed's support of Newsom's (by progressive standards) tough crackdown on homelessness has had mixed results. Not only has Breed said the city will start issuing tickets and conducting raids, but she has also directed city officials who deal with homeless people to offer relocation as a first option.

“San Francisco will always lead with compassion, but we cannot allow our compassion to be exploited,” Breed said.

Farrell, who served as interim mayor, criticized Breed for failing to clear encampments in the past.

“To be clear, nothing stopped the city from clearing encampments outside Grants Pass,” Farrell posted on social media, referring to the recent Supreme Court ruling. “Mayor Breed used ongoing litigation as an excuse.”

Farrell has promised to win all of the city's key constituencies if elected, and has positioned himself as the most conservative among a largely moderate slate of candidates.

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Lurie criticized Breed's push to clear the camps, calling it a “lack of action” and claiming that San Francisco lacks shelters or assisted living to get people off the streets.

“Moving the camps from one block to another didn't work when Mark Farrell tried it, and it won't work under this mayor,” he added.