Edwin Lee Picked As Interim San Francisco Mayor
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5 / AP / BCN) -- The San Francisco Board of Supervisors on Friday afternoon overwhelmingly backed City Administrator Edwin Lee to be the interim mayor, a move that could lead to San Francisco's first Asian-American leader.
During its final meeting, the outgoing board voted 10-1 to name Lee to the post being vacated by Gavin Newsom, the state's newly elected lieutenant governor. Outgoing board member Chris Daly was the lone vote against Lee.
The vote is nonbinding, however, because Newsom has not yet left office. The pick also must be confirmed by the new board, which has four incoming members, scheduled to take office this weekend.
But even without the newcomers' support, the board still has the six votes needed to confirm Lee if the carryover members stay consistent.
"It's crystal clear now that Ed Lee will become mayor," Newsom said late Friday. "Unless people start flipping, the core six (votes) will be here."
Newsom had pushed back the Jan. 3 date of his swearing-in as lieutenant governor, saying he had more to accomplish while in the mayor's office.
But progressives argued that he simply wanted to prevent the current 11-member board from appointing an interim mayor with a far-left political agenda.
If confirmed, the 58-year-old Lee would become the first Chinese-American to lead the city, which is more than one-third Asian. The board was expected to take up the issue Tuesday.
"The Chinese community in San Francisco has never had this opportunity before," said Supervisor John Avalos. "It's very, very meaningful."
Newsom called Friday's vote an "extraordinary moment."
The results of the vote elicited loud applause from the audience, which included many Asian-Americans. But one person who wasn't there to celebrate was Lee himself, who has been vacationing overseas.
His first public comments about the prospect of becoming mayor came Thursday when he released a statement through the Chinatown Community Development Center saying he would accept the interim position if asked.
"I love this city and will agree to serve as mayor, if that is the will of the Board of Supervisors," he said. "And I agree to do this on behalf of the people of San Francisco that I have served for over 30 years."
Deputy city administrator Ann Brown called his decision to steer clear of the negotiating process "classic, understated Ed Lee."
"My guess, knowing him, is he's doing it out of a sense of what he thinks will be best for the city during this period of transition," Brown said of Lee's willingness to take on a role he never actively sought.
Newsom described Lee as "the only candidate that did not ask for the position," and called his selection a "recruitment."
Lee, who has a law background, began his public-service career in 1989, when former Mayor Art Agnos named him investigator for the city's first whistleblower ordinance. He has since worked under four mayors, heading the Human Rights Commission and the Department of Public Works and overseeing purchasing for the city.
He has served as city administrator since 2005.
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