Former San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin has announced he does not plan to run for the office again in November after being recalled in June’s election.
Boudin wrote on social media about his decision, saying, “I am choosing to put my family first: I will not be running for office in 2022.”
In the June 7 election, just over 55 percent of San Francisco voters approved Proposition H, the ballot measure to recall Boudin. Recall organizers collected tens of thousands of signatures to get it on the ballot and had argued Boudin, who was elected district attorney in November 2019, was too lenient on repeat offenders and failed to prioritize public safety.
Following Boudin’s recall, Mayor London Breed in July appointed former assistant district attorney and prominent recall supporter Brooke Jenkins as district attorney. Jenkins will now have to run for election in November to stay in office, and Boudin confirmed Thursday that he wouldn’t be among the challengers against her.
“I’m committed to criminal justice reform; I’m also committed to my family.”
Chesa Boudin
“Over the past weeks I’ve spoken to family, friends, supporters and everyday San Franciscans about how we can best continue to make our criminal justice system fairer and more effective. I have devoted my public life to this effort because it makes our communities stronger & safer,” Boudin wrote on social media.
“I’ve also taken stock of the burden that more than three years of nearly non-stop campaigning placed on my family,” he added. “I’m committed to criminal justice reform; I’m also committed to my family.”
Boudin touted some of the reforms started when he was in office, saying he expanded services for victims while also emphasizing restorative justice and behavioral health treatment for offenders, and said he was “gravely concerned” that Jenkins has rolled back some changes he implemented.
This past week, Jenkins announced she was reinstituting a weight limit threshold to determine whether to pursue felony charges against drug dealers, saying Boudin allowed dealers to “operate with impunity” and exacerbate the city’s drug overdose crisis.
Boudin wrote, “I join the vast majority of San Franciscans in urging our elected — or, as is increasingly common, appointed — leaders to work for equal justice, evidence-based reforms, and improved services for victims.”