Two weeks left to vote

You have two weeks left to vote. The deadline to cast your ballot is Tuesday, March 5.

You may want to sign up for ballot tracking. After you vote, you’ll get notified when your ballot has been opened and counted.

If you’re not yet registered, it’s too late to get a ballot mailed to you, as the deadline to register to vote has passed. However, you can still vote at the City Hall Voting Center, or at a polling place on the last day. You will have to register and vote at the same time. Find more information here.

First time voting in SF? Haven’t voted in a few years? We’ve published a new voting primer for San Francisco voters that walks you through casting your ballot step-by-step. If you prefer to learn by watching a video, the SF Department of Elections has an excellent video about this election.

Need a cheat sheet? Our Vote page is your go-to resource for voter guides, our voting primer, and ways you can help get out the vote. Feel free to share it with friends and family members who are eager to vote in the Democratic primary election.

Know any voters in the Central Valley, Antelope Valley, or Orange County? The California Grassroots Alliance created a video highlighting the Democratic candidates running in six Congressional districts in these three areas, and the Alliance’s interviews of those candidates. Check it out on YouTube and watch the interviews here.

SFO and OAK getting upgrades thanks to the Biden Infrastructure Law

On Thursday, February 15, the US Department of Transportation announced that 144 airports across the country would be receiving $970 million from the Biden Infrastructure Law for upgrades and enhancements. This includes $31 million for San Francisco International Airport for HVAC upgrades and $10 million for Oakland International Airport for restroom improvements. This is Oakland’s second award, following $15 million in 2021 for runway work. Learn more about these projects on our blog.

Golden Gate Bridge tolls going up again

The Golden Gate Bridge, Highway, and Transportation District, facing revenue shortfalls in the near future, is considering four possible schedules for annual increases to the toll paid by drivers coming to the City over the Golden Gate Bridge. One proposal is a 4 percent increase each year, and the other three are different fixed amounts each year.

The District will be holding an in-person hearing tomorrow, Thursday, February 22, at 9 AM. You can also give a written public comment via their form or by mail.

For details of the proposed increase schedules, as well as instructions on how to give public comment, see the proposal on the District’s website.

On your ballot: Prop. 1, to fund more mental health treatment facilities and supportive housing

This statewide proposition would fund a $6.4 billion bond issue to build 10,000 in-patient and residential treatment beds in our state. A portion of this funding would also be set aside for permanent supportive housing.

We need more beds and more supportive housing, and proponents of Prop. 1 say that it does exactly that. We also need to fund community-based mental health services, yet opponents object to the fact that Prop. 1 reallocates money from these services to the new infrastructure. Prop 1 also includes funding for involuntary treatment, opposed by disability rights advocates.

For more details, check out the article on Proposition 1 in CalMatters’s 2024 Voter Guide.

On your ballot: Prop B, the police staffing ballot measure

We hear a lot of debate, especially over social media, about how many police officers the City needs versus how many it has.

Currently, the Board of Supervisors controls how many officers SFPD can employ. They wield the power of the purse, so they can add or remove budgeted positions at any time, subject only to political will and budget limitations.

(About those budget limitations: We’re entering a period of steep budget deficits. Increasing anything in the budget is going to be either entirely infeasible or at the expense of deep cuts to other services. For this year, Mayor Breed has asked for no new openings and the closure of existing vacancies.)

One of the propositions on your ballot is Proposition B, which its proponents claim would impose a new Charter mandate on police staffing levels. But it wouldn’t bring more cops to our City, nor would it address causes of crime.

Our Deep Dive explores what Prop B would actually do, what it wouldn’t, and the harms it might cause.

Volunteers welcome: We’re looking for an Editor and a Social Media Person!

This year is going to be a busy time, and we’d love a few more volunteers on board to help with editing our weekly newsletter and publishing ongoing social media posts.

Our newsletter team meets every Tuesday night, and our editor helps us make sure everything looks professional, all the links work, and all the commas are in the right places.

Several members of our team post on various social media websites (Twitter, Mastodon, Instagram, etc.). This is more of an ad-hoc role. We especially would like someone to help us create, schedule, and monitor posts on the Meta Suite (Facebook and Instagram) and Threads. No prior knowledge required—we can train you!

If you’re interested in volunteering, let us know at contact@indivisiblesf.org.

TODAY: Bay Area Coalition Phone Banks to CA, NV, and AZ: Wednesday, Feb. 21, 5–7 PM (and every Wednesday thereafter). Join to help elect Adam Gray in CA-13 and Rudy Salas in CA-22. This phone bank also calls into swing states Nevada and Arizona. RSVP here.

Tomorrow, Thursday Feb 22, 9 AM: Golden Gate Bridge Toll Program Public Hearing at the Administration Building at Golden Gate Bridge Toll Plaza. The District will be holding an in-person hearing on raising the Golden Gate Bridge Toll tomorrow, Thursday, February 22, at 9 AM. You can also give a written public comment via their form or by mail. See their website for more details.