San Francisco mayoral candidates set to debate again; Mayor Breed won't attend
SAN FRANCISCO — The stage is set for the latest debate between the highest polling candidates for mayor of San Francisco.
But a last-minute dropout is leaving a visible absence on stage that political experts say will be felt by voters.
After committing her participation in April, Mayor London Breed's campaign team last week announced they would withdraw, citing timing.
She told CBS News Bay Area on Tuesday afternoon, "I am the mayor of San Francisco not just a candidate. I have to run the city and that includes meetings and everything else that I need to do so I have to be very selective about the number of the debates and the amount of time I'm able to be available for these kinds of opportunities."
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Political expert and Sonoma State University professor David McCuan said voters will notice the vacancy, one that we can expect other candidates to try to fill.
"San Francisco voters are hyper-political and hyper-engaged, and when you see you not on the stage, that does send messages," he said.
"I expect them to talk a lot about the person not on the stage, and that means that what all of them have in common is the challenge to Mayor Breed means they can talk about issues that are important to them and their candidacies, but they can also talk about her absence and how that speaks volumes," McCuan continued.
In a statement to CBS News Bay Area, her campaign said the mayor has "already participated in four debates and still has the upcoming SF Chronicle/KQED debate and numerous candidate forums on her schedule, between now and Election Day."
"Unlike Daniel Lurie and Mark Farrell, Mayor Breed has a job. She has to balance the demands of running the City, while also running a campaign," the campaign continued. "She has a limited amount of time and she wants to speak directly with voters as much as possible. She wants to escape the bubble of city insiders and go straight to the people, meeting them as they live their daily lives. Daniel Lurie and Mark Farrell want more debates so they can stand on the stage repeating the same toothless talking points over and over again."
In response to the mayor's statement, Mark Farrell told CBS News Bay Area, "Mayor Breed claims she is ducking debates because she wants to break out of the circle of political insiders, but it's really because she doesn't want to defend her track record of failed leadership on the top issues facing our City."
"She has no vision for San Francisco, and it's why only 27% of voters in a recent poll approve of her job performance," Farrell added. "I look forward to participating in tomorrow's debate where I will have the opportunity to potentially reach hundreds of thousands of voters directly with my vision and plans to deliver the change that our City deserves."
A spokesperson for Daniel Lurie's campaign said "After six years as mayor and six as a Supervisor, London Breed is dodging the voters instead of speaking to them because she can't defend her record of growing and exploiting the city's corrupt bureaucracy. Daniel Lurie is the only candidate with the right experience to change the broken system at City Hall and voters deserve to hear why. Ultimately, change is coming to San Francisco whether or not the mayor is afraid to stand on the stage with Daniel."
Viewers can watch the debate Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. It will be broadcast live on CBS News Bay Area in addition to being livestreamed on our website and app. Voters can also submit questions to be asked of the candidates.
The debate comes after the recent attempted robbery in Union Square where San Francisco 49ers rookie Ricky Pearsall was shot in the chest during an attempted robbery. Pearsall is expected to make a full recovery, while the 17-year-old suspect has been charged with attempted murder.
McCuan said we can expect the candidates to make their own pitch for how they would respond to and prevent high-profile crimes like this.
"We see a very active, diverse electorate out in San Francisco this particular cycle, but you're also going to see a lot of voters oriented to change," he explained. "You place in the context of what's happening in Union Square. You place that in the context of 49ers receiver who shot and as a result, that also provides an opening for moderates, and moderates are really going to push forward here."
With just a few weeks until election day and the wildcard outcomes of ranked choice voting, now is the time for candidates to make their pitch to voters not only in San Francisco, but across the Bay Area.