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Vol.64/No.1      January 10, 2000 
 
 
San Francisco mayor wins re-election in run-off between liberal Democrats  
 
 
BY JESSIE LUDLOW 
SAN FRANCISCO—Mayor Willie Brown easily won re-election against challenger Tom Ammiano in the run-off vote here December 14. Ammiano, president of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, won 25 percent of the vote as against Brown's 39 percent in the November 2 mayoral election forcing the December 14 run-off.

Ammiano surprised many when he launched a write-in campaign three weeks before election day and received nearly 49,000 write-in votes, beating out the top challengers whose names appeared on the ballot.

In the run-off, Brown won 59.8 percent of the vote over Ammiano's 40.1 percent.

Ammiano, who was put forward as the more "progressive" Democrat against the liberal establishment Democrat Brown, organized an active coalition of gay and lesbian rights activists, tenants rights groups and many middle class layers in the city. He attracted support from some youth and workers also.

"My voice may be high. I may be gay. My politics may be left, but we are right," Ammiano told supporters as he conceded the election to Brown at the Roccapulco nightclub.

Brown claimed victory amongst hundreds of supporters at the Longshoreman's union hall.

Though there was very little difference in the political positions of the two candidates, the national Democratic Party leadership worked closely with the Brown campaign to insure his victory. In addition to the support of the San Francisco Democratic Party, San Francisco Labor Council, and virtually all the city's elected officials, Brown received support from President William Clinton, Hillary Clinton, California's Gov. Gray Davis, and the state's two U.S. senators, Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. Many voters received taped phone messages from President Clinton and Jesse Jackson.

Brown also won the endorsement of the Republican Party in San Francisco.

Some of the issues of key concern to workers in this city are the extremely high rents (San Francisco is among the top three cities in the United States for housing costs), low wages, and public transportation.

Brown says he is be credited with city employees making no less than $9 an hour. He says he supports the idea of a living wage ordinance. Ammiano initiated "Living Wage" legislation in May 1999 that would require all nonprofit agencies and businesses with city contracts to pay their employees at least $11 an hour plus health benefits.

Although both claim to be in favor of affordable housing, neither candidate put forward any concrete proposals to lower rents and provide housing to those who have none.

"Vacancy control is illegal under California state law and not the way to create new affordable housing. Neither is having the city order landlords to lower existing rents," stated the Ammiano-for-Mayor web page, responding to a "rumor" that he wanted to "institute vacancy control and roll back rents."

Both candidates put at the center of their proposals to "reform" public transportation, which amounts to scapegoating workers in the city transit system, known as MUNI.

"Tom has always been a strong advocate for MUNI reform and opposed the bizarre policy of allowing MUNI drivers to skip out on work," said the Ammiano campaign, referring to contract provisions that used to allow workers to miss an occasional day of work without penalty. Ammiano's campaign made much of the fact that he takes the bus to work.

"Brown ended MUNI driver 'miss-outs'," stated the Mayor's campaign.  
 
 
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