Newly filed fundraising figures give a first look at how November's San Francisco District Attorney’s race is shaping up while pointing to which power blocs in the city are backing each candidate.
Current District Attorney Brooke Jenkins has raised $126,564 from donors including Mayor London Breed and the San Francisco Police Officers Association head Tracy McCray.
Former Police Commissioner John Hamasaki has raised $86,943. Another former Police Commissioner, Joe Alioto Veronese, has raised $56,472 for his 2022 committee and $183,225 for his 2023 committee.
All San Francisco political candidates were required to file campaign finance forms on Thursday, offering the first look at how the District Attorney candidates are performing on the fundraising front.
Veronese took to Twitter Friday morning to say that he had out-raised both Jenkins and Hamasaki.
If history is any indicator, Super PACs—political committees that can raise and spend an unlimited amount of money—will also get into the game for November's District Attorney election.
So far, there don’t appear to be any committees that are formed specifically to support or oppose any of the candidates, but that doesn't mean that big dollar money won't be coming into the race via Super PACs.
The Real Justice PAC, a political committee that supported former District Attorney Chesa Boudin, has already reported spending thousands on emails opposing Jenkins.
Perhaps more importantly, the disclosures filed Thursday also show which political camps are backing each candidate.
Alioto Veronese, who has raised the most so far, is getting much of his funding from prominent old-line San Franciscans and his large clan.
Hamaski, meanwhile, is being funded by many in the progressive political opposition, including Supervisor Dean Preston, public defenders and reform advocates.
Jenkins, who came second in the financial race, received funds from Mayor London Breed and many of her allies, as well as from backers of the successful recall effort against former District Attorney Chesa Boudin.