You've probably heard the headlines by now, but the sf mayoral race 2024 was a wild ride that basically rewrote the playbook for San Francisco politics. It wasn't just another election. It was a massive, expensive, and deeply personal referendum on whether the city could actually fix its most stubborn problems.
Daniel Lurie, a nonprofit founder and heir to the Levi Strauss fortune, ended up taking the crown. He didn't just win; he sort of dismantled the incumbent's path to victory by positioning himself as the ultimate "outsider." London Breed, the city's first Black female mayor, had a tough hill to climb from the start. After years of dealing with a pandemic, a retail exodus, and very public struggles with open-air drug markets, her approval ratings were sitting in a pretty rough spot. By June 2024, about 66% of voters disapproved of her performance. That’s a hard number to outrun.
How Daniel Lurie Won the SF Mayoral Race 2024
Money talks in San Francisco, and this race was screaming. Daniel Lurie dumped over $8 million of his own wealth into the campaign. Honestly, that’s a lot of mailers. But it wasn't just about the cash. He played the Ranked-Choice Voting (RCV) system like a pro. In a city where you can rank up to ten candidates, being everyone's "second choice" is sometimes better than being a few people's "first choice."
Lurie focused his message on accountability. He leaned into his background with Tipping Point Community, arguing that City Hall needed a CEO-style shakeup rather than more career politicians. It worked. People were frustrated. They were tired of seeing the same faces at the Board of Supervisors meetings and felt like nothing was changing on the streets.
The final tally was pretty telling. After 14 rounds of counting, Lurie finished with 182,364 votes (55.02%), while Breed trailed with 149,113 (44.98%).
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The Ranked-Choice Factor
The way the votes moved was fascinating. Mark Farrell, a former interim mayor who ran a very "tough on crime" campaign, was a major player early on. When he was eliminated in the 12th round, a massive chunk of his supporters—about 55%—saw their votes transfer straight to Lurie.
Breed, on the other hand, struggled to pick up steam from the other candidates. A lot of voters who supported the more progressive Aaron Peskin (who got about 22.8% of first-choice votes) actually left their second-choice slots blank or "exhausted" their ballots rather than picking Breed. It's a weird quirk of SF politics where the far-left and the moderates sometimes end up in a standoff that benefits the guy in the middle.
The Issues That Defined the Campaign
If you walked down Market Street or through the Tenderloin in 2024, you knew exactly what this election was about. Public safety and the fentanyl crisis were front and center.
Breed tried to pivot late in her term. She started a series of sweeps on homeless encampments and took a more aggressive stance on drug arrests. She even backed ballot measures like Prop F, which aimed to require drug screening for welfare recipients. But for many, it felt like too little, too late.
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- Crime and Safety: Mark Farrell and Daniel Lurie both hammered Breed on retail theft.
- The Downtown Recovery: With office vacancy rates hitting record highs, everyone had a "plan" to save downtown, but nobody seemed to have a magic wand.
- Housing: San Francisco is notoriously one of the hardest places to build anything. Lurie promised to slash the red tape that makes a simple permit take years.
A Neighborhood Divided
The demographics told a story of two cities. Breed kept a strong hold on many working-class areas and precincts with higher Black and Latino populations. These voters were often the ones who only ranked a single candidate on their ballot. In contrast, voters in wealthier, more educated areas like Noe Valley or the Marina were much more likely to use all their RCV slots, often ranking Lurie and Farrell at the top.
Lurie's path to victory was paved by these high-turnout, moderate neighborhoods. The city saw a total turnout of 78.93%, which is huge. It shows just how much people cared about the outcome of the sf mayoral race 2024.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Results
A common misconception is that San Francisco "turned red." Honestly, that's just not true. While the city did move toward more moderate "common sense" policies, it remains a deep blue stronghold. Look at the other results from that night: Kamala Harris took over 80% of the vote in SF, and progressive stalwarts like Connie Chan managed to hold onto their Board of Supervisors seats in tight races.
The shift wasn't toward Republicanism; it was a shift toward competence. Voters weren't asking for a conservative revolution; they just wanted the buses to run on time and the sidewalks to be clean. Lurie managed to capture that vibe perfectly by not being part of the "City Hall establishment."
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The "Levi's Heir" Label
Critics tried to paint Lurie as just a wealthy guy buying an election. Breed's campaign repeatedly pointed out his lack of government experience. But in a weird way, the "outsider" label was his biggest asset. After years of political infighting between the Mayor's office and the Board of Supervisors, a guy who hadn't been part of those arguments looked pretty refreshing to the average voter.
Actionable Steps for SF Residents
Now that the dust from the sf mayoral race 2024 has settled and the new administration is in place, staying engaged is the only way to ensure those campaign promises actually turn into policy.
- Monitor the 100-Day Plan: Every new mayor has a honeymoon period. Keep an eye on how Lurie handles the immediate budget deficit, which is projected to be massive.
- Attend Board of Supervisors Meetings: The Mayor doesn't rule alone. Many of the issues discussed during the campaign—like housing density and police staffing—still have to go through the supervisors.
- Use 311 Constantly: If you want to see if the "cleaner streets" promise is real, report issues. Data from 311 is one of the best ways to track if the city is actually responding faster under new leadership.
- Stay Informed on Prop M: This business tax reform passed alongside the mayor's race. It's going to change how the city collects revenue, and its success will largely determine if small businesses can survive the next few years.
The 2024 election was a turning point. Whether Daniel Lurie can actually deliver on the "change" he sold to nearly 200,000 San Franciscans is the big question. For now, the city has a new direction, a new face at the top, and a very long "to-do" list.