cawacko
Well-known member
The city was a mess for years, but the new mayor deserves credit. He’s done a heck of a job and the polls show it.
For context, almost everyone in SF is a Democrat. People get split into “moderates” and “progressives” (even though many moderates here would be considered progressive nationally). Lurie is seen as a moderate, and what’s fascinating is that the progressives are the group most unhappy with him and least optimistic about the city’s future.
Nationally, this is good news for Democrats. It could help Newsom and maybe Harris. Republicans will attack them over California’s problems, and with both tied to SF, they will try to use the city against them. With this turnaround, that line of attack will not land as well.
Six months into Mayor Daniel Lurie’s tenure, San Franciscans are far happier with his performance than they were with former Mayor London Breed’s one year ago, according to a new poll commissioned by the Chronicle.
The poll also revealed a turnaround in voters’ attitudes about the city overall: A majority now rate the quality of life to be good or excellent, and half of respondents believe conditions will continue to improve.
The poll, which surveyed 961 registered voters between July 9 and 13, found that almost three quarters of San Franciscans approved of the job Lurie had done so far. His sky-high approval rating is almost the exact inverse of how likely voters rated Breed’s performance last July: At that time, just over one quarter of respondents said they approved of the mayor’s performance.
Bar chart showing approval ratings for former mayor Breed and current mayor Lurie. 28% approved of Breed last year, while 71% disapproved. 73% of voters approve of Lurie, while 25% disapprove.
The poll reflects a sampling of San Francisco residents, and was not perfectly representative of the city’s demographic breakdown. Notably, even after weighting the results to better reflect the city’s demographics, respondents were 53% non-Hispanic white, while the city on the whole is just 37% white. Still, the poll found no major difference between white and non-white respondents in their support of the mayor — although Asian respondents were more supportive than Black and Latino respondents.
The political landscape in which the two polls were conducted has notably shifted as well. Last July, San Francisco was still struggling out of its pandemic-induced slump and grappling with a bruised national reputation. Campaigns for the mayoralty, swirling controversies around the state of the city and the presidential election were in full swing.
Now, even as much of the nation’s attention has shifted to President Donald Trump, his sweeping cuts to the government, his harsh immigration policies and even his feud with California Gov. Gavin Newsom, San Franciscans seem to prefer that Mayor Lurie stay out of the fray. Half of voters said the mayor should remain focused on local issues, while just 29% said Lurie should help lead the opposition.
Not everyone is bullish on the mayor. Men were slightly more supportive than women, and more recent arrivals to San Francisco were more supportive than longtime residents. But the sharpest divide was political: People who identified themselves as progressives were far less likely to approve of Lurie’s performance, and to be bearish on the city’s future in general.
Bar char showing how progressives, liberals, moderates and conservatives rated Lurie's performance, the state of the city and whether it will get better in the next few years. 52% of progressives approved of Lurie, 83% of liberals did, 85% of moderates, and 78% of conservatives did. 66% of progressives rated the quality of life as good right now, while 70% of liberals did, 53% of moderates and 25% of conservatives. 38% of progressives expect life in SF to improve in the next few years, while 56% of liberals did, 60% of moderates and 47% of conservatives
Strikingly, Lurie was less popular on specific issues than he was overall. While most respondents agreed that he was keeping the city clean, keeping residents and businesses safe from crime and revitalizing downtown, he scored less favorably when it came to providing shelter for the homeless, handling the overdose crisis and addressing the cost of housing.
The poll also found that San Franciscans still have mixed reviews of the Board of Supervisors: 38% of respondents said they approved of the supervisors’ performance, and 46% said they disapproved. Though that’s far from the ringing endorsement that Lurie enjoyed, it’s much better than a year ago, when just 20% of respondents approved of the board’s job, while 70% disapproved.
Overall, San Franciscans are more likely now than last year to say that the city is headed in the right direction. Almost 50% of people in the new poll said they believed the quality of life in San Francisco would get better, while 23% said they believed it would get worse. Last July, 40% believed it would get better, while 32% believed it would get worse. In both years, a little over a quarter of people believed that the quality of life would stay the same.
Bar chart showing the change in estimates of the quality of life in 2024 to 2025. In 2024, a majority said the quality of life was just adequate or poor. In 2025, a majority said the quality of life was excellent or good.
Even as a majority agree that things are looking up in the city, it’s clear that a certain nostalgia for the past persists. The Chronicle asked whether respondents found the city to be more fun today than it was 10 years ago. Nearly 60% said it was more fun a decade ago. Just 13% found it more fun today.
For context, almost everyone in SF is a Democrat. People get split into “moderates” and “progressives” (even though many moderates here would be considered progressive nationally). Lurie is seen as a moderate, and what’s fascinating is that the progressives are the group most unhappy with him and least optimistic about the city’s future.
Nationally, this is good news for Democrats. It could help Newsom and maybe Harris. Republicans will attack them over California’s problems, and with both tied to SF, they will try to use the city against them. With this turnaround, that line of attack will not land as well.
How’s Lurie doing as mayor? Our new poll on the state of S.F. had stunning results
Six months into Mayor Daniel Lurie’s tenure, San Franciscans are far happier with his performance than they were with former Mayor London Breed’s one year ago, according to a new poll commissioned by the Chronicle.
The poll also revealed a turnaround in voters’ attitudes about the city overall: A majority now rate the quality of life to be good or excellent, and half of respondents believe conditions will continue to improve.
The poll, which surveyed 961 registered voters between July 9 and 13, found that almost three quarters of San Franciscans approved of the job Lurie had done so far. His sky-high approval rating is almost the exact inverse of how likely voters rated Breed’s performance last July: At that time, just over one quarter of respondents said they approved of the mayor’s performance.
Mayor Lurie is as popular as Mayor Breed was unpopular
Share of respondents that said they "strongly" or "somewhat" approved or disapproved of the San Francisco mayorBar chart showing approval ratings for former mayor Breed and current mayor Lurie. 28% approved of Breed last year, while 71% disapproved. 73% of voters approve of Lurie, while 25% disapprove.
The poll reflects a sampling of San Francisco residents, and was not perfectly representative of the city’s demographic breakdown. Notably, even after weighting the results to better reflect the city’s demographics, respondents were 53% non-Hispanic white, while the city on the whole is just 37% white. Still, the poll found no major difference between white and non-white respondents in their support of the mayor — although Asian respondents were more supportive than Black and Latino respondents.
The political landscape in which the two polls were conducted has notably shifted as well. Last July, San Francisco was still struggling out of its pandemic-induced slump and grappling with a bruised national reputation. Campaigns for the mayoralty, swirling controversies around the state of the city and the presidential election were in full swing.
Now, even as much of the nation’s attention has shifted to President Donald Trump, his sweeping cuts to the government, his harsh immigration policies and even his feud with California Gov. Gavin Newsom, San Franciscans seem to prefer that Mayor Lurie stay out of the fray. Half of voters said the mayor should remain focused on local issues, while just 29% said Lurie should help lead the opposition.
Not everyone is bullish on the mayor. Men were slightly more supportive than women, and more recent arrivals to San Francisco were more supportive than longtime residents. But the sharpest divide was political: People who identified themselves as progressives were far less likely to approve of Lurie’s performance, and to be bearish on the city’s future in general.
Views on Lurie and state of San Francisco vary by political identification
Bar char showing how progressives, liberals, moderates and conservatives rated Lurie's performance, the state of the city and whether it will get better in the next few years. 52% of progressives approved of Lurie, 83% of liberals did, 85% of moderates, and 78% of conservatives did. 66% of progressives rated the quality of life as good right now, while 70% of liberals did, 53% of moderates and 25% of conservatives. 38% of progressives expect life in SF to improve in the next few years, while 56% of liberals did, 60% of moderates and 47% of conservatives
Strikingly, Lurie was less popular on specific issues than he was overall. While most respondents agreed that he was keeping the city clean, keeping residents and businesses safe from crime and revitalizing downtown, he scored less favorably when it came to providing shelter for the homeless, handling the overdose crisis and addressing the cost of housing.
How San Franciscans rated Mayor Lurie's performance on specific issue
The poll also found that San Franciscans still have mixed reviews of the Board of Supervisors: 38% of respondents said they approved of the supervisors’ performance, and 46% said they disapproved. Though that’s far from the ringing endorsement that Lurie enjoyed, it’s much better than a year ago, when just 20% of respondents approved of the board’s job, while 70% disapproved.
How approval ratings for the S.F. Board of Supervisors changed
Overall, San Franciscans are more likely now than last year to say that the city is headed in the right direction. Almost 50% of people in the new poll said they believed the quality of life in San Francisco would get better, while 23% said they believed it would get worse. Last July, 40% believed it would get better, while 32% believed it would get worse. In both years, a little over a quarter of people believed that the quality of life would stay the same.
Bar chart showing the change in estimates of the quality of life in 2024 to 2025. In 2024, a majority said the quality of life was just adequate or poor. In 2025, a majority said the quality of life was excellent or good.
Even as a majority agree that things are looking up in the city, it’s clear that a certain nostalgia for the past persists. The Chronicle asked whether respondents found the city to be more fun today than it was 10 years ago. Nearly 60% said it was more fun a decade ago. Just 13% found it more fun today.