How London Breed's unpopularity and ranked-choice voting could doom her reelection bid
San Francisco Mayor London Breed has faced lackluster approval ratings in each of the Chronicle’s three mayoral polls this year, a major obstacle as she fights for reelection against four prominent rivals.
Breed can still win the race, but with two weeks to go until Election Day, her apparent unpopularity has provided an opening for one of her challengers — the nonprofit founder Daniel Lurie — to defeat her in the final round of ranked-choice voting. To pull ahead, Breed would likely need to pick up more second- and third-choice votes from people supporting her competitors, which polling indicates will be a challenge, given how many voters view her negatively.
While Breed’s job approval numbers shot up between the Chronicle’s first and second polls this year, the third and final poll last week found that her favorability had declined again. About 35% of likely voters now say they approve of Breed’s performance, a six-point drop from August. It’s still better than her standing in February, when only 28% of voters said they approved of her.
Breed has been campaigning on an optimistic message, pointing to San Francisco’s declining crime reports, a reduction in homeless encampments, arrests of drug dealers and users, and an influx of downtown events as proof that her efforts to address the city’s most serious problems are delivering results. She said at her official campaign launch event that while her opponents were trashing the city, she was “lifting San Francisco up.” A flier being distributed by her campaign in recent days describes her as “San Francisco's biggest champion.”
https://www.sfchronicle.com/election/article/breed-reelection-unpopular-ranked-choice-19845293.php