Supervisor Joel Engardio will face a special recall election Sept. 16 over his role in passing the controversial November ballot measure to close the Great Highway to cars.
The Department of Elections on Thursday announced that it had finished the signature verification process and found that the campaign to recall Engardio had submitted 10,523 valid signatures. That surpassed the threshold of at least 9,911 valid signatures — representing 20% of registered voters in Engardio’s District 4 — needed to trigger the special election.
“With the petition deemed sufficient, the department will proceed with preparations for a special municipal election,” the city agency said in a statement.
The recall effort is largely driven by controversy over Proposition K, a ballot measure Engardio championed to close the Great Highway and convert the two-mile stretch of concrete into a park. Prop. K was a citywide ballot measure, but the special recall election will be limited to District 4, which largely includes the Sunset.
Jamie Hughes, the recall campaign leader, said the number of valid signatures shows that Sunset residents are outraged over the highway’s closure and want better representation in City Hall.
In a statement, Engardio acknowledged that while the park, which opened this spring as Sunset Dunes, has become a popular destination, traffic issues and pedestrian safety remain top concerns for the Sunset community. But he emphasized that recalling him will not reopen the Great Highway.
“I’m confident that Sunset voters will see through this recall,” he said. “I hear every day from residents who are tired of distractions and appreciate having a supervisor who shows up and delivers.”
The Prop. K debate has been one of the most divisive in San Francisco in recent years. Though the measure passed with more than 55% of the vote citywide, most of the support came from east-side neighborhoods farther from the highway.
Prop. K faced fierce opposition on the west side, where many residents — especially drivers — expressed concerns about traffic and argued that the measure was put on the ballot without adequate community input.
The fight has exacerbated an ongoing rift between urbanists, cyclists, and environmentalists who want to see greater access to green spaces, and many west-side and suburban residents who rely on cars — and, previously, the highway — to move around town.
Led by Engardio, the Board of Supervisors voted last year to put Prop. K on the ballot as a citywide measure. Engardio faced criticism for his decision to put the measure to all city voters, rather than leaving it to the west side as a neighborhood issue.
The recall effort began months before the election, when Engardio introduced the idea of turning the Great Highway into a park. At the time, residents threatened to recall him if he didn’t withdraw the ballot measure. But Engardio has long argued that the Great Highway is under threat from coastal erosion and that a park would be a great benefit to the city.
After the measure passed in November, Sunset residents launched the recall campaign and began collecting signatures in January.
Since its opening in April, Sunset Dunes supporters have touted the coastal park as a major success. Tens of thousands have visited, according to the city’s Recreation and Parks Department.
“Change is hard, and even more so when climate change is forcing our hand,” Engardio said. “I understand that Sunset Dunes represents a tough change for some in our community, but early data is clear: The park is supporting the rehabilitation of the coastal dunes, it’s bringing new customers to local businesses, and it’s providing a popular space for generations of people to enjoy walking, biking, and nature.”
Lucas Lux, president of Friends of Sunset Dunes and a strong ally of Engardio, said the park is supported by thousands of Sunset neighbors.
“We’re proud of the park our community brought to life,” Lux said in a statement. “We’re grateful to Supervisor Engardio for his political courage.”
The September recall election marks the third serious attempt to remove an elected official from office in San Francisco in recent years, following successful school board and district attorney recalls in 2022.