Ed Lee Likely to be Interim Mayor of San Francisco

With current San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom about to be sworn in as Lieutenant Governor of California, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors have to elect an interim mayor. Seven members have already pledged to support City Administrator Ed Lee. It only takes six votes to confirm the selection, so it’s likely Ed Lee will take the office. The official vote takes place this Friday, and he will also need to be confirmed by four new board members who join the Supervisors this Saturday.

Ed Lee first begin working for the City and County of San Francisco in 1989 as the Investigator for the City’s first Whistle Blower Ordinance and has since served as the Executive Director of the Human Rights Commission, Director of City Purchasing, and Director of the Department of Public Works before he was first appointed as City Administrator in 2005.

Lee’s pick is not without controversy, but if it happens, he will become the city’s first Chinese American mayor. He’s an unexpected pick since the progressives that have majority control were expecting either Sheriff Michael Hennessey or former Mayor Art Agnos to succeed Gavin Newsom. Supervisor Chris Daly blamed Lee’s pick on Supervisor David Chiu. In return, Chiu defended the selection as one that was inline with the progressive agenda. David Chiu himself was also considered a likely successor to Gavin Newsom.