A group of Sunset residents is launching a campaign to recall Supervisor Joel Engardio over his support of Proposition K, the ballot measure to close part of the Great Highway that was successful in the November election but roundly rejected by his district constituents.
A recall petition letter, filed Tuesday morning with the Department of Elections, accuses Engardio of violating his “campaign promises of transparency” and betraying voters in his district.
Prop. K passed with 55% of the vote. But on the west side, including Engardio’s District 4, which encompasses the stretch of the coastal roadway affected by the measure, 64% voted against it.
About 80 residents signed the initial recall petition. The website recallengardio.com went live Monday night.
In a statement Tuesday morning, Engardio said he respects voters’ right to seek a recall but urged district residents to consider the entirety of his work, such as his support for small businesses, education, and public safety.
According to the Department of Elections and California election law, the recall campaign must gather at least 9,911 signatures from District 4 voters within four months to put the measure on the ballot. If it qualifies, the Department of Elections will call for a special election; only District 4 residents would vote on the recall.
Vin Budhai, a leader of the “No on K” campaign and Sunset resident, is spearheading the recall along with neighbors. The campaign has hired an attorney and consulting firm and is awaiting a green light from the Department of Elections to begin soliciting signatures.
“This isn’t just about one district — it’s about all of San Francisco,” Budhai said. “Our leaders need to remember they work for the people who elected them and that promises matter. This recall is about fighting for a city where every voice is heard.”
The recall attempt has been brewing since the summer, when Engardio and four other supervisors put Prop. K on the November ballot. The measure asked voters whether a two-mile stretch of the Upper Great Highway should be permanently closed to vehicles.
The move angered many west-side residents who say they rely on the oceanfront road to commute and argued that the issue shouldn’t have been up to the entire city to decide because it disproportionately affects their neighborhoods. The measure became a flashpoint between motorists and advocates for bicycling, walking, and public transit.
Engardio has criticized the recall effort, saying it will lead to more divisiveness, and said Prop. K will create a park that will help the environment, boost local merchants, and bring joy.
“Attempting to recall an elected official over a single issue isn’t helpful to us moving forward as a city,” Engardio said in mid-November in a post on X. “I’ve come to believe that transforming a section of the Great Highway into an iconic oceanside park is the right thing to do.”
However, Supervisor Connie Chan, another west-side official who won reelection, slammed Prop. K as a “top-down, winner-takes-all approach” in an August debate. She said she would have preferred that the Board of Supervisors, rather than voters, determine the fate of the Great Highway.
Chan supports a compromise that would reduce the number of road lanes and allow both car access and park space, as conceived in a San Francisco County Transportation Authority study released in 2021.
Prop. K supporters included House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and outgoing Mayor London Breed. The city announced last month that the state has kicked in $1 million for the park project.
Engardio made history in 2022 as the first candidate to unseat an elected supervisor since the city brought back district elections in 2000.
This campaign will be the third serious effort in recent years to recall San Francisco elected officials, after the 2022 successful recalls of school board members and the district attorney. There have been failed attempts to recall district supervisors.