Joel Engardio

Last updated

Lionel Hsu
​
(m. 2015)​
Joel Engardio
Supervisor Joel Engardio.jpg
Member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
from the 4th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 8, 2023
Education Michigan State University (BA)
Harvard University (MPA)
Website Board website
Chinese name
Chinese 殷嘉立 [1]
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin Yīn Jiālì
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutping Jan1 Gaa1 laap6

Joel P. Engardio [2] (born September 17, 1972) is an American politician, writer, and public-safety advocate. [3] He is the supervisor for District 4 of San Francisco, California, serving since 2023 after unseating incumbent Gordon Mar in the 2022 San Francisco Board of Supervisors election. [4]

Contents

Early life and education

Engardio is a native of Saginaw, Michigan, where he attended Arthur Hill High School. [5]

Engardio graduated with a bachelor's in journalism from Michigan State University and a Master of Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. [5] [6]

Media career

Engardio is a former journalist. [4] He moved to San Francisco in 1998 to cover Tom Ammiano's mayoral campaign during the 1999 San Francisco mayoral election. [6]

Engardio and Tom Shepard directed the documentary Knocking about Jehovah's Witnesses. [2]

San Francisco Board of Supervisors

Engardio ran failed campaigns for District 7 supervisor in 2012, 2016, and 2020. [4]

Engardio ran for District 4 supervisor after his neighborhood was redistricted from District 7. He was elected in November 2022, unseating incumbent Gordon Mar by a margin of 50.9% to 49.1%. [4] [7] Engardio is the first gay supervisor elected to represent the city's westside. [8] Engardo was also the first candidate to defeat an incumbent supervisor. [9]

In 2023, Engardio organized the first night market in the Sunset District along with other community groups. The first event drew over an estimated 10,000 visitors. [10] [11] This spurred similar events in other neighborhoods, such as Chinatown and The Castro. [12]

Engardio was among five supervisors who placed Proposition K, which proposed closing two miles of the Great Highway in the Sunset District to cars and turning it into a public park, onto the November 5, 2024 election. [13] [14] The proposition passed with nearly 55%. A recall campaign was subsequently launched against Engardio, who represents the neighborhood. [15] [16] The new Sunset Dunes park opened in April 2025. [17]

Engardio authored Proposition G: Offering Algebra 1 to Eighth Graders. [18] This proposition would encourage the San Francisco Unified School District to allow eighth graders to take Algebra I, in place of needing to wait until ninth grade. [18]

Recall effort

In November 2024, a group of voters in the Sunset District launched a recall campaign Engardio over his support of Proposition K, which was a ballot measure to close part of the Great Highway and turn it into a park. [19] [20] [21] A recall petition was filed with the San Francisco Department of Elections in December 2024. While Proposition K passed with 55% of San Francisco residents voting in support, 64% of his constituents in District 4 voted against it. [19] According to The Economist, "opposition to the new park is part of a larger battle locals are waging against change" and the residents want "more meetings, more input, more veto points for new development." [21]

On Friday, May 20, 2025, the San Francisco Department of Elections confirmed that it had received 10,985 valid signatures, which is more than the 9,911 signatures that were required to put the recall on the ballot (20% of the voters in District 4). [22] [23] On September 16, 2025, Engardio was recalled with 64.65% of early results in favor of his removal. [24]

Political stances

Engardio is categorized as a moderate. [4] [21] Engardio supported the 2022 recall of San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin and the 2022 recall of three San Francisco Board of Education commissioners. [25]

Personal life

When he was elected to supervisor, Engardio lived in the Lakeshore neighborhood of San Francisco. [4] He was raised a Jehovah's Witness, but he does not identify with the religion. [2]

Engardio is gay. [2] He has been married to Lionel Hsu since 2015. [26]

References

  1. ↑ "罷免殷嘉立正反陣營周末積極 活動". Sing Tao Daily (in Chinese). February 24, 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Miller, David Ian (May 14, 2007). "Finding My Religion / A new film, "Knocking," offers a fresh look at the much-maligned Jehovah's Witnesses". SFGate. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  3. ↑ Morris, J. D. (October 26, 2022). "S.F. election: Here's where Sunset supervisor candidates stand on public safety and housing". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Morris, J. D.; Barned-Smith, St John (November 18, 2022). "Moderate Joel Engardio just won an S.F. supervisor's seat after three failed bids. What changed this time?". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  5. 1 2 Moran, Darcie (June 27, 2013). "Michigan marriage equality 'just a matter of time': Saginaw native, San Francisco resident Joel Engardio says about DOMA ruling". mlive. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  6. 1 2 Bajko, Matthew S. (February 29, 2012). "Political Notebook: Gay man seeks westside SF supervisor seat". Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved November 21, 2022.
  7. ↑ "Incumbent SF supervisor Gordon Mar concedes to Joel Engardio in Sunset District race". CBS News. November 17, 2022. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  8. ↑ Li, Han; Ege, Mike (November 17, 2022). "Joel Engardio Heads Toward Historic Victory in SF Sunset Race". The San Francisco Standard. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  9. ↑ "Recall campaign targets SF supervisor over Great Highway backlash". The San Francisco Standard. December 3, 2024. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
  10. ↑ Yang, Junyao (August 31, 2024). "See how they run: Sunset Night Market was simply too packed to campaign". Mission Local. Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  11. ↑ Yadegaran, Jessica (August 31, 2024). "20,000 people swarm SF's Sunset District for second year of massive night market". SF Gate .
  12. ↑ Ferrannini, John (August 1, 2024). "SF's Castro eyes night market to boost foot traffic". Bay Area Reporter. Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  13. ↑ Cooke, Riley (June 20, 2024). "San Francisco voters could turn Great Highway into permanent oceanfront park". NBC Bay Area. Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  14. ↑ Knight, Heather; Segal, Lauren (November 4, 2024). "San Franciscans Are 'Fighting for Their Lives' Over One Great Highway". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  15. ↑ Wiley, Hannah (December 21, 2024). "Plans to transform an iconic San Francisco highway into a park ignite recall furor". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  16. ↑ Lin, Da (February 7, 2025). "Recall campaign against San Francisco Supervisor Joel Engardio officially launched - CBS San Francisco". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  17. ↑ Krans, Brian (April 13, 2025). "Sunset Dunes: San Francisco's Controversial New Park Officially Opens | KQED". www.kqed.org. Retrieved May 3, 2025.
  18. 1 2 "Proposition G: Offering Algebra 1 to Eighth Graders | San Francisco". San Francisco government. Retrieved February 21, 2024.
  19. 1 2 "Sunset residents launch effort to recall Supervisor Joel Engardio". The San Francisco Standard. December 3, 2024. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
  20. ↑ "Recall Engardio | Recall Joel Engardio | San Francisco, CA, USA". Recall Engardio. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
  21. 1 2 3 "San Francisco's recall fever". The Economist. 2025. ISSN   0013-0613.
  22. ↑ "Campaign to recall Engardio has enough signatures, organizers say". The San Francisco Standard. May 22, 2025. Retrieved May 25, 2025.
  23. ↑ KPIX | CBS NEWS BAY AREA (May 24, 2025). San Francisco Supervisor Joel Engardio faces likely recall election as residents rally for change . Retrieved May 25, 2025– via YouTube.
  24. ↑ Cheang, Ko Lyn; Hodgman, Lucy (September 17, 2025). "San Francisco Politician Recalled Over the Great Highway's Closure". New York Times . Retrieved September 17, 2025.
  25. ↑ Morris, J. D. (November 17, 2022). "Moderate Joel Engardio unseats progressive S.F. Supervisor Gordon Mar". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
  26. ↑ Engardio, Joel (June 28, 2015). "A perfect union of lessons learned". San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
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