Bevan Dufty is my first choice for Mayor, probably because I think he is most like the person I would be if I were willing to put up with a life in politics.
Bevan has lots of ideas, but isn’t ideological. Instead of grandstanding, he’s practical. He watches details and focuses on real-world ways to provide services to citizens. Bevan is not bland. He’s just not a drama queen.
- San Francisco needs a “black agenda,” Bevan says. The city is losing racial and economic diversity because we are heedlessly pricing people of lower economic means out of the city. This is hitting African Americans and other communities of color especially hard. The City needs to develop a way to keep its low-income residents and to keep a good racial mix.
- City employees need to be treated with respect, especially if you are going to have hard negotiations over money issues. Bevan points out that the previous head of MUNI never went to the MUNI yards to meet his workers at their workplace. Bevan says as Mayor he’ll show up at the MUNI yards and talk to the people and thank them for doing a vital job. He says that if you want buses to show up on a rainy Monday, the bus drivers needs to feel that the City appreciates their work. (More on Bevan and MUNI.)
- We need to encourage families with children to stay in the city. We need to be more child-friendly (and have a better school system) to keep San Francisco diverse. (More on Bevan and children.)
Of course Bevan talks about schools and more quality of life plans on this website http://www.bevandufty.com/. But, the three policies above are good illustrations why Bevan earns my vote. Each of these issues are important, and no other candidate has identified the problem and come up with a plan to act.
Bevan’s whole campaign has been positive. His MUNI TV ad made national news for its classy style. He has not engaged in bad-mouthing other candidates. When Ed Lee announced his decision to stand for election, Bevan spoke at a candidates’ forum after the other contenders had spent their opening remarks declaring Lee’s candidacy a catastrophe. Bevan said that the city had survived earthquakes and fires and Ed Lee running for Mayor was not a major event to worry about. He then went on to name the priorities he thought were more important.
I think San Francisco needs an energetic Mayor who spends more time planning than posturing. I think that Bevan Dufty will be that strong mayor who can effectively lead the city. I hope that you will consider making Bevan your first choice in Tuesday’s election.