Board of Supervisors Re-elects David Chiu as President in Unanimous Vote

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors elected Supervisor David Chiu as president by unanimous roll-call vote during its January 2013 inaugural meeting, with all 11 members present voting for Chiu.

The vote followed a brief nominations process in which several supervisors put forward candidates and then withdrew names. Supervisor Norman Yee nominated Chiu; Supervisor Scott Wiener seconded the nomination. Earlier in the meeting, Supervisor Jane Kim had nominated Supervisor Malia Cohen and Supervisor Malia Cohen had been nominated by Supervisor Kim; both Cohen and Kim later withdrew their nominations and announced support for Chiu’s reelection.

Why it matters: the president presides over board proceedings and has administrative responsibilities that can shape agendas and committee assignments. The nominations and public comments preceding the vote reflected public interest in the board’s leadership makeup, including multiple speakers urging the board to consider a woman or a woman of color for the presidency.

Nominations, public comment and procedure Members opened nominations under the procedures described by the clerk. Supervisor Norman Yee said he wanted “to do this first order of business” by nominating David Chiu. Supervisor Jane Kim and Supervisor Malia Cohen each had been nominated earlier; both spoke about the significance of a woman or woman of color holding the office and then withdrew their names. Cohen said she would withdraw her nomination and later told the board she would support the winning nominee. Kim said she would “look forward to supporting him today.” (All quoted comments are taken verbatim from the meeting transcript.)

Public comment before the vote included a series of two-minute statements from residents and organizational representatives. Several speakers urged the board to elect a woman or a woman of color; for example, Peter Warfield of the Library Users Association urged “a fresh start” and asked the board to “get a fresh start with a new president.” Other commenters expressed broad support for various nominees or raised unrelated community concerns; the clerk limited public comment and noted translation accommodations and a 30-minute maximum for the total public-comment period.

Voting and immediate outcome The clerk conducted the roll-call vote in alphabetical order as required under newly effective Board Rule 5.20 for the inaugural meeting. The clerk recorded each supervisor voting for Chiu; the clerk announced, “Yi for Chu. Congratulations, mister president.” The board then moved to the next agenda item. The formal action recorded at the meeting: David Chiu was elected president by majority vote and the result was unanimous (11 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain).

What the president said After the vote, the newly elected president addressed the board, thanked colleagues and staff, and closed his remarks by calling the board to action: “Let’s get to work.”

Process and context notes - The clerk cited a requirement under the city charter that the board must select a president by majority vote and noted Board Rule 5.20 (alphabetical roll-call for the inaugural meeting) as the procedure used for this session. - All 11 supervisors were present for the vote. The meeting included the swearing-in of newly elected supervisors earlier in the program and a public-comment period in which dozens of speakers addressed the nominations and other city issues. - The board’s selection of a president was uncontested after the two other nominees withdrew; the transcript shows those withdrawals occurred on the record prior to the roll-call vote.

Looking ahead The board adjourned the item after the vote and proceeded to brief remarks from the mayor and inaugural comments by newly seated supervisors. The board signaled that leadership and committee work under the newly elected president would begin immediately.