Voters in San Francisco’s District 8 gathered for a supervisor forum featuring all four candidates competing to represent the area, including the Castro neighbourhood.
The event in Noe Valley brought together Gary McCoy, Darshini Patel, Michael Trung Nguyen and Emanuel “Manny” Yekutiel ahead of the November election. District 8 also includes Noe Valley, Glen Park, Diamond Heights and Cole Valley.
Housing and public safety were among the main issues discussed during the forum, held at Noe Valley Town Square and organised by the United Democratic Club.
The candidates broadly agreed on the need for more housing, particularly along Market Street and around the Safeway site on Church Street. Yekutiel has proposed facilitating 10,000 new homes in the district over the coming years.
They were more divided over the use of surveillance technology, including Flock automated number-plate cameras. Yekutiel argued that police should have the tools needed to tackle crime while protecting civil liberties, while McCoy, Patel and Nguyen raised concerns over privacy and the potential misuse of data.
The contest is taking place as current District 8 supervisor Rafael Mandelman prepares to leave office after reaching his term limit. The forum gave residents an opportunity to compare the four candidates’ positions before casting their votes.
