Both for and against “Recall Engardio” campaigns launched on February 1, 2025

SAN FRANCISCO — The passage of Proposition K in the November 2024 election to permanently close the portion of Great Highway in the Sunset District has pushed the opponents of the measure to take actions by organizing a recall petition against the author of the measure, District 4 Supervisor Joel Engardio. Both sides of the recall petition have officially launched their campaigns on February 1 trying to gain more supporters among D4 voters.

The notice of intention to circulate a recall petition was submitted to the Department of Elections on December 3, 2024 by Sunset resident Vin Budhai and retired Police Commander Richard Corriea who is a resident of the Richmond District along with 80 signatures of supporters.

The intent to recall filing was approved in late January and the organizers were authorized to start collecting signatures of voters in D4 where Engardio represents. About 10,000 qualified signatures of voters in D4 are required to be submitted by deadline on May 22, 2025 for a recall election.

"When Supervisor Engardio campaigned for office, he promised to deliver transparency, public safety, and safer streets for the residents of D4. Once elected, Engardio betrayed voters in D4 by reneging on his promises, failing to consult with them on their perspectives and needs, and neglecting neighborhood safety," supporters of the recall campaign wrote in the notice of intention to circulate a recall petition.

"By sponsoring and campaigning for an initiative to close the Great Highway permanently (Prop. K), Engardio violated his campaign promises of transparency and disregarded the needs and concerns of D4 residents. Engardio denied his constituents an opportunity for notice and input before voting to put Prop. K on the ballot. His indifference to his constituents' opinions was proved beyond doubt when they voted overwhelmingly against Prop.K," organizers added.

Organizers also wrote about the negative impact of Prop. K on D4 voters. "Engardio's Prop. K jeopardizes our neighborhood safety. Traffic will be routed onto high-injury, congested thoroughfares; commute times will be lengthened, exhaust-spewing vehicles will increase on residential streets in D4; response times for emergency services will increase; a major evacuation route for western San Francisco will be unavailable in the event of disaster or conflagration; traffic congestion will increase in D4 neighborhoods and Golden Gate Park, affecting air quality and pedestrian safety."

Engardio filed a statement with the Department of Elections on December 9, 2024 in response to the recall petition. He asked voters to consider the entirety of his work, not only one issue.

"As supervisor, I have brought more police protection to the Sunset, fought to bring algebra back to middle schools, created night markets with community partners, reduced red tape for small businesses, and secured funding for Sunset Blvd. greenway improvements, delivered relief funds to Taraval merchants impacted by street reconstruction," wrote Engardio in his statement.

"I'm humbled by the views of residents who opposed Prop. K. Many said they didn't feel heard in the process, and I take this feedback to heart," Engardio continued. "I'm hearing loud and clear that we need safer residential streets and better traffic flow. We can all agree on this."

"This recall is based on my support for putting Prop. K to a democratic vote of the people. While voters have a right to recall elected leaders, this recall will not change the outcome or implementation of Prop. K," Engardio added.

Organizers of the recall movement and Engardio have both formed their own campaigns to support or oppose the recall petition. Both campaigns kicked off their campaigns on February 1 by hosting events in the Sunset District.

"This past Saturday, we had an amazing turnout at the United Irish Cultural Center for our official recall kickoff. Over 145 people showed up — neighbors, community leaders, and supporters—all ready to take action. We were honored to have retired Judge Quentin Kopp and District 4 resident and business owner Albert Chow as guest speakers," the Recall Engardio campaign said in an email.

"We’ve already collected over 1,000 signatures, and we have many volunteers out collecting more every day. Momentum is strong, and we’re confident we will be able to submit the necessary number of signatures to the Department of Elections to qualify for the ballot," said Budhai.

Budhai said a few locations would be set up in the following weeks around the district to make it easier for supporters to sign the recall petition. Those locations will include restaurants, parks, public libraries, supermarkets and Sunset Farmer's Market.

On the Engardio side, his campaign to fight the recall has recruited campaign staffers including Chinese American campaign manager Lian Chang and Field Director Sharon Liu-Bettencourt.

Engardio and his campaign staffers as well as supporters met with residents in the district in the kickoff event on Feb. 1. "Although it was a very rainy day, our unstoppable volunteers showed up with good cheer to stand with Joel [Engardio] and get geared up to talk with Sunset voters," said Chang who was born in Canada. Liu-Bettencourt was born in China and speaks English as a second language.