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San Francisco supervisors elect David Chu as board president after multi-round vote
Summary
After multiple rounds of nominations and public comment, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors elected Supervisor David Chu as board president in Jan. 2011 by an 8–3 roll call tally following the withdrawal of another nominee.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors elected Supervisor David Chu as board president in January 2011 after several rounds of nominations and a withdrawal, concluding with an 8–3 roll-call vote.
The result followed an opening of nominations during the boards inaugural meeting. Supervisors Sean Ellsburn, John Avalos and David Chu were nominated; Ross Mercarimi was nominated earlier but declined. The board reviewed nomination rules and began roll-call voting. After multiple rounds produced no majority, Supervisor Ellsburn withdrew, saying he did so "in the spirit of moving this meeting forward," and the board held additional votes that produced an 8-3 result for Chu.
The vote capped extended public comment during the nomination period. Dozens of residents and organizational representatives addressed the board; some speakers urged reelecting the incumbent (Chu) for continuity, while others urged support for John Avalos or Sean Ellsburn because of their records on neighborhood and local-hire issues. The clerk then conducted further roll-call votes that produced the final tally.
Board staff had earlier announced administrative confirmations before the oath and election. The department of elections had provided certificates declaring the official election of several supervisors, and the controllers office confirmed that newly and continuing board members had been bonded as required by the San Francisco Administrative Code.
The election of a board president comes as the board prepares to work with a new interim mayor and to address an immediate budget shortfall and other citywide issues. Board members repeatedly said they expected to focus on budget, public-safety and neighborhood priorities during the coming term.
Votes and process: The clerk conducted roll-call voting in district order; because no nominee secured a majority in early rounds, the board continued voting until, after Ellsburns withdrawal, a final roll call yielded 8 ayes and 3 noes for Supervisor David Chu.
