Levi Strauss Heir Leads San Francisco Mayor’s Race
Daniel Lurie, a philanthropist and an heir to the Levi Strauss fortune, appears poised to oust San Francisco Mayor London Breed in her bid for reelection, as the city continued to post election results on Nov. 6.
Lurie led Breed by 12 points Wednesday morning, earning 56 percent of the vote, compared to the incumbent's 44 percent.
Breed has not yet conceded, but told supporters Tuesday she would wait until all votes were counted.
"It ain't over till it's over," she told supporters at an election night party Tuesday, according to wire reports.
She noted she was also behind in her first race for mayor in 2019, but won the office. Breed is the first black woman to serve as mayor of San Francisco.
The county has not yet certified the results and planned to issue preliminary numbers around 4 p.m. Thursday, according to the Department of Elections.
The county is still processing about 157,000 ballots, most of which are vote-by-mail ballots received Monday and Tuesday by mail and at polling places, the elections department reported in a press release provided to The Epoch Times Wednesday.
The county also has to process 20,000 provisional ballots cast at polling locations by voters whose names are not on the voter registration list.
The county may take up to 30 days after Elections Day to certify the final election results, according to the department.
The mayor's challenger signaled that he is ready to get to work, according to a letter to his supporters posted on social media and his website.
Lurie thanked his supporters in the letter Tuesday night, saying the city was ready for change.
"Over the past 13 months, I've had the great experience of meeting with San Franciscans in every corner of our city," Lurie wrote. "I heard your frustrations but also your hope and desire to write our next chapter."
He added it was time for leadership rooted in "true public service, one that puts the people of San Francisco above all else."
The candidate spent more than $9 million of his own money in the race to replace Breed. He raised more than $16 million, according to financial reports.
Lurie is the son of Rabbi Brian Lurie and Miriam "Mimi" Lurie Haas. His parents divorced when he was a child and Lurie's mother subsequently married Peter Haas, a great-grandnephew of Levi Strauss.
Haas is a billionaire and one of the largest shareholders of Levi Strauss & Co.
Strauss, an immigrant from Bavaria, opened a dry goods company in San Francisco at the height of the California Gold Rush in 1853, according to the company. Strauss and tailor Jacob Davis created blue jeans in 1873 to meet the needs of miners, cowboys, and workers at the time.
Lurie is the founder and CEO of Tipping Point Community, a San Francisco nonprofit launched in 2005 that raises money and helps educate, employ, house, and support impoverished people in the Bay Area, according to his biography.
Breed is a native San Franciscan who was raised by her grandmother in the city's public housing. She has spent much of her efforts during the last year responding to retail, tech, hotel, and corporate departures from the city.
She supported two successful public safety ballot measures passed in March—propositions E and F—to expand police powers and compel some drug users to enter treatment.
Multiple companies have shuttered businesses in the once-thriving City by the Bay in recent years, with some citing the increase in retail theft, homelessness, and open-air drug use.
Most recently, San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Ricky Pearsall was shot during an attempted robbery in the city's downtown Union Square in August. Pearsall survived the shooting.
Breed did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday and her campaign has not released a public statement after results started rolling in.
