25-05-2025
Recall election of San Francisco Supervisor Joel Engardio likely after signature verification
It's looking likely that a recall election for San Francisco District 4 Supervisor Joel Engardio will happen.
Recall organizers said city officials have verified that more than 99% of signatures sampled on Friday were valid. Now, "Recall Engardio" posters are popping up throughout the Sunset.
Resident Selena Chu agrees with it.
"Hold him accountable and ask, where's our voice in this decision-making?" Chu said.
Chu has lived in the sunset since 2011, she doesn't feel Supervisor Engardio is listening to his constituents.
"He was elected to be the District 4 Supervisor, but instead of coming to us, he went for the whole city, but I think it needs to start here," Chu said.
Engardio angered many Sunset residents, including Chu, when he sponsored and voted for an initiative, known as Prop K, to close a two-mile stretch of the upper Great Highway to cars and instead create a park.
Citywide, Prop K passed with more than 54% of the vote, but the majority of Sunset and Richmond district residents, the areas closest to it, opposed it.
"With the closure, it does add 15-30 minutes extra, per morning, to my commute," explained Chu. "Some people on social media ask, 'Why don't you just wake up earlier?' accusing me of being lazy. It's not a matter of that."
This change impacts her everyday life and takes away something she can never get back, her time.
She said Engardio didn't hold townhalls to hear from the community.
But in a statement to CBS Bay Area, Engardio said he's confident the majority of voters would oppose the recall and approve of the work he's doing.
"I'm working with SFMTA to further improve traffic flow and pedestrian safety," Engardio said. "I'm fixing problems big and small for residents, supporting merchants, and working with the mayor and my colleagues to pass legislation that addresses pressing issues on public safety, housing, and our local economy. I'm continuing to do the job of supervisor as I always have."
So far, the Department of Elections has only done a random sample of signatures. They still have to verify every one of the nearly 11,000 signatures, and that could take weeks.
Chu was one of the people collecting signatures with the Sunset United Neighborhood Group.
She believes the recall will get on the ballot.
"We did our own validations prior to submitting," Chu said. "We double checked, we triple checked, we quadruple checked to make sure we have good signatures prior to submitting."
Engardio is a former journalist and was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 2022. He was a notable supporter of the successful recall of several board members and District Attorney Chesa Boudin, but he was critical of the recall effort against him.
"If there's a recall every time we disagree with one issue, we won't have a functioning government," said Engardio.
Chu argues the recall is not about one issue, but how he handles issues.
"That's his distraction from actually listening," Chu said. "He's still not listening. He still doesn't get it. It's not about the great highway. It's about how he works. We pay someone with our tax dollars for representation for the sunset district and that starts with town hall meetings."
