The race is on to replace Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) after she announced Thursday she wouldn’t be running for reelection, opening up her San Francisco-based House seat for the first time in decades.
A handful of Democrats have been floated as potential successors. Unlike other states, California has a “jungle primary,” meaning all candidates are listed on the same ballot, regardless of party. The top two vote-getters then proceed to the general election, meaning two Democrats could square off next November for her seat.
Here’s a look at who could replace Pelosi in the House:
Connie Chan
One name to watch for is progressive Connie Chan, who has represented District 1 on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors since 2021 and chairs its Budget and Finance Committee.
Pelosi endorsed the San Francisco supervisor in her tight reelection bid last year despite the San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee backing her more moderate challenger, Marjan Philhour, according to The San Francisco Standard. Chan was also buoyed by the support of key labor groups.
Politico noted some local observers believe Pelosi wants Chan to succeed her in the House given a shared appearance together with labor groups who were supporting California’s redistricting ballot measure.
The Hong Kong-born supervisor was a former aide to former San Francisco Supervisor Sophie Maxwell and former Vice President Kamala Harris, when she was San Francisco’s district attorney.
Chan spokesperson Robyn Burke told Politico last month that “she supports Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi for Congress” when asked for comment.
Christine Pelosi
Christine Pelosi, a California Democratic National Committee member and the daughter of Nancy Pelosi, could also be a potential successor to her mother in the House.
Christine Pelosi, 59, sits on the executive committees for the Democratic National Committee and California Democratic Party. She is an attorney whose experience includes working as special counsel in the Clinton administration.
She has also extensively covered her mother’s personal life and political career, including shooting a documentary, “Pelosi in the House,” and authoring the “The Nancy Pelosi Way.”
Ahead of the November off-year elections, Christine Pelosi told The New York Times she was “100% devoted to passing Prop. 50.”
Scott Wiener
California state Sen. Scott Wiener (D) had already announced a challenge to Pelosi several weeks before her announcement, telling the Times in an interview last month, “I’m passionate about San Francisco having the best possible representation.”
Known for his focus on housing, Wiener chairs the state Senate Budget Committee and Senate Legislative Ethics Committee and has served in the upper chamber since 2017, representing the 11th Senate District. Prior to that, he served as a San Francisco supervisor. He’s seen as a moderate Democrat within the city.
Wiener could be San Francisco’s first openly gay member of Congress if elected.
Saikat Chakrabarti
Saikat Chakrabarti, a former tech executive who served as chief of staff to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), was one of the first Democrats to challenge the 85-year-old Pelosi, launching his congressional bid in February.
“I respect what Nancy Pelosi has accomplished in her career, but we are living in a totally different America than the one she knew when she entered politics 45 years ago,” Chakrabarti said in a statement announcing his bid.
Chakrabarti, a 39-year-old who also worked on Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) 2016 presidential campaign, was among a wave of younger candidates challenging older incumbents in Congress amid concerns over age came in the wake of former President Biden’s ill-fated reelection bid.
Jane Kim
One other name to watch for is Jane Kim, the California Director for the Working Families Party and a former San Francisco supervisor. She also served as the Sanders’s political director for the state during his 2020 White House run.
Kim told the Times in 2022 that she had not ruled out a run for Pelosi’s seat amid questions over the former House Speaker’s future in Congress.
