Mayor of San Francisco facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco
Flag of San Francisco
Seal of San Francisco
Incumbent Daniel Lurie since January 8, 2025
Government of San Francisco
Style	His Honor Mr. Mayor
Residence	No official residence
Term length	Four years, renewable once
Inaugural holder	John W. Geary
Formation	1850
Salary	$1
Website	Office of the Mayor

The mayor of the City and County of San Francisco is the main leader of the city and county government. This person is in charge of making sure city laws are followed. They can also approve or reject new laws made by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, which is like the city's law-making group.

The mayor serves for four years and can be elected for a second term right after their first. San Francisco is special because it's both a city and a county. This means the mayor leads both parts of the government. This combined government has been in place since 1856.

Since 1850, when California became a state, 45 different people have been mayor of San Francisco. Before California became a state, there were mayors during the Spanish and Mexican times, starting in 1779.

The current mayor is Daniel Lurie, who started his term on January 8, 2025.

How San Francisco Mayors Are Elected

When Mayoral Elections Happen

The mayor of San Francisco is chosen every four years. Until 2019, these elections happened one year before the United States presidential elections in November. Now, thanks to a change approved by voters in 2022, mayoral elections happen at the same time as presidential elections. This change was made to encourage more people to vote, as more people usually vote in presidential election years. For example, in 2019, only 42% of voters participated, but in 2020, 86% voted.

To run for mayor, a person must live in San Francisco and be registered to vote there. The new mayor usually takes office on January 8 after the election.

Understanding Non-Partisan Elections

In California, all city elections, including for mayor, are "non-partisan." This means that when you see the ballot, it doesn't say which political party a candidate belongs to. Because of this, several candidates from the same political party can run against each other in the same election.

How Votes Are Counted: Instant-Runoff Voting

Mayoral elections used to have a "two-round system." If no candidate won more than half of the votes in the first election, the top two candidates would have a second election a few weeks later.

In 2002, San Francisco changed its election system to "instant-runoff voting." This new system lets voters rank their top three choices for mayor. If no one gets more than half of the first-choice votes, the candidate with the fewest votes is removed. Then, the second-choice votes (and third-choice votes if needed) are counted until one candidate wins a majority. This system saves money because it avoids needing a separate second election. It was first used for the mayoral election in 2007.

Mayor's Pay and Home

What the Mayor Earns

As of 2024, the mayor of San Francisco earns $364,582 each year. This is the highest salary for a mayor in the United States. However, some other city employees, like those who manage the city's pension plan, earn even more. The current mayor, Daniel Lurie, has chosen to give back almost all of his salary to San Francisco, keeping only $1.

Does the Mayor Have an Official Home?

Unlike some other big cities in the U.S., San Francisco's mayor does not have an official home provided by the city. In the 1990s, former Mayor Willie Brown tried to get a large house on Yerba Buena Island to be used as a ceremonial residence for the mayor, but it didn't happen.

What the Mayor Does

The mayor has many important jobs and powers:

• They must make sure all city laws are followed.
• They manage and organize all the different city departments.
• They work with other governments on city projects.
• They create plans and goals for the Board of Supervisors.
• They prepare and present the city's budget at the end of each financial year.
• They can approve or reject laws passed by the Board of Supervisors.
• They can attend meetings of the Board of Supervisors and its committees.
• If an elected city official leaves office, the mayor can appoint someone new to fill that spot until the next election.
• They can choose a member of the Board of Supervisors to act as mayor if the mayor is away.
• They can direct city workers during emergencies.

What Happens if a Mayor Leaves Office Early

If a mayor dies, resigns, or cannot do their job, and they haven't named someone to act as mayor, the president of the Board of Supervisors becomes the acting mayor. Then, the full Board chooses someone to fill the rest of the mayor's term.

This has happened seven times in San Francisco's history:

• James Otis died, and George Hewston took over.
• Eugene Schmitz was removed from office, and Charles Boxton became mayor.
• Charles Boxton resigned, and Edward Robeson Taylor took his place.
• James Rolph resigned to become the California governor, and Angelo Rossi became mayor.
• George Moscone was sadly assassinated, and Dianne Feinstein became mayor.
• Gavin Newsom resigned, and Ed Lee took over.
• Ed Lee died in office, and London Breed became acting mayor before the Board of Supervisors chose Mark Farrell as interim mayor.

List of San Francisco Mayors

So far, 45 different people have served as mayor of San Francisco. However, there have been 46 mayoral terms because Charles James Brenham served two terms that were not back-to-back. He is counted as both the second and fourth mayor.

The mayor who served the longest was James Rolph. He was mayor for over 18 years until he resigned to become the California governor. He was very popular, which helped him stay in office for so long. During his time, San Francisco's public transportation system grew, the Civic Center was built, and the city hosted the World's Fair.

The shortest term was by Charles Boxton, who was mayor for only eight days before he resigned. Three mayors have died while in office: Otis from illness, Moscone was assassinated in 1978, and Lee died from a heart attack.

Dianne Feinstein and London Breed are the only women who have served as mayor. Both became mayor first by taking over from a previous mayor and then by winning an election. Willie Brown and London Breed are the only African Americans to serve as mayor so far. Ed Lee was the only Asian American mayor.

Four mayors have Jewish family backgrounds: Washington Bartlett, Adolph Sutro, Dianne Feinstein, and Daniel Lurie. Fourteen mayors were born in San Francisco itself. Four mayors were born in other countries: Frank McCoppin and P.H. McCarthy (both from what is now Ireland), Adolph Sutro (from Prussia, which is now part of Germany), and George Christopher (from Greece).

Willie Brown was the first black mayor of San Francisco. London Breed is the first black female mayor. She was a supervisor and president of the Board of Supervisors. She won a special election after Mayor Ed Lee passed away in December 2017. London Breed finished Lee's term and then won the 2019 San Francisco mayoral election for a full term. She ran again in the 2024 San Francisco mayoral election but did not win.

This list does not include people who were only "acting mayors" for short periods when the mayor was out of town.

#	Image	Mayor	Term start	Term end	Party
1		Geary, John W.John W. Geary	May 1, 1850	May 4, 1851		Independent
2		Brenham, Charles JamesCharles James Brenham	May 5, 1851	December 31, 1851		Whig
3		Harris, Stephen RandallStephen Randall Harris	January 1, 1852	November 9, 1852		Democratic
4		Brenham, Charles JamesCharles James Brenham	November 10, 1852	October 2, 1853		Whig
5		Garrison, Cornelius KingslandCornelius Kingsland Garrison	October 3, 1853	October 1, 1854		Whig
6		Webb, Stephen PalfreyStephen Palfrey Webb	October 2, 1854	June 30, 1855		Know Nothing
7		Van Ness, JamesJames Van Ness	July 1, 1855	July 7, 1856		Democratic
8		Whelan, George J.George J. Whelan	July 8, 1856	November 14, 1856		American
9		Burr, Ephraim WillardEphraim Willard Burr	November 15, 1856	October 2, 1859		American
10		Teschemacher, Henry F.Henry F. Teschemacher	October 3, 1859	June 30, 1863		Populist
11		Coon, Henry PerrinHenry Perrin Coon	July 1, 1863	December 1, 1867		Populist
12		McCoppin, FrankFrank McCoppin	December 2, 1867	December 5, 1869		Democratic
13		Selby, Thomas HenryThomas Henry Selby	December 6, 1869	December 3, 1871		Republican
14		Alvord, WilliamWilliam Alvord	December 4, 1871	November 30, 1873		Republican
15		Otis, JamesJames Otis	December 1, 1873	October 30, 1875		Populist
16		Hewston, GeorgeGeorge Hewston	November 4, 1875	December 5, 1875		Democratic
17		Bryant, Andrew JacksonAndrew Jackson Bryant	December 6, 1875	November 30, 1879		Populist
18		Kalloch, Isaac SmithIsaac Smith Kalloch	December 1, 1879	December 4, 1881		Workingmen's
19		Blake, Maurice CareyMaurice Carey Blake	December 5, 1881	January 7, 1883		Republican
20		Bartlett, WashingtonWashington Bartlett	January 8, 1883	January 2, 1887		Democratic
21		Pond, Edward B.Edward B. Pond	January 3, 1887	January 4, 1891		Democratic
22		Sanderson, George HenryGeorge Henry Sanderson	January 5, 1891	January 3, 1893		Republican
23		Ellert, Levi RichardLevi Richard Ellert	January 3, 1893	January 6, 1895		Republican
24		Sutro, AdolphAdolph Sutro	January 7, 1895	January 3, 1897		Populist
25		Phelan, James D.James D. Phelan	January 4, 1897	January 7, 1902		Democratic
26		Schmitz, EugeneEugene Schmitz	January 8, 1902	July 8, 1907		Union Labor
27		Boxton, CharlesCharles Boxton	July 9, 1907	July 16, 1907		Union Labor
28		Taylor, Edward RobesonEdward Robeson Taylor	July 16, 1907	January 7, 1910		Democratic
29		McCarthy, P. H.P. H. McCarthy	January 8, 1910	January 7, 1912		Union Labor
30		Rolph, JamesJames Rolph	January 8, 1912	January 6, 1931		Republican
31		Rossi, Angelo JosephAngelo Joseph Rossi	January 7, 1931	January 7, 1944		Republican
32		Lapham, RogerRoger Lapham	January 8, 1944	January 7, 1948		Republican
33		Robinson, ElmerElmer Robinson	January 8, 1948	January 7, 1956		Republican
34		Christopher, GeorgeGeorge Christopher	January 8, 1956	January 7, 1964		Republican
35		Shelley, John F.John F. Shelley	January 8, 1964	January 7, 1968		Democratic
36		Alioto, JosephJoseph Alioto	January 8, 1968	January 7, 1976		Democratic
37		Moscone, GeorgeGeorge Moscone	January 8, 1976	November 27, 1978		Democratic
38		Feinstein, DianneDianne Feinstein	December 4, 1978	January 7, 1988		Democratic
39		Agnos, ArtArt Agnos	January 8, 1988	January 7, 1992		Democratic
40		Jordan, FrankFrank Jordan	January 8, 1992	January 7, 1996		Democratic
41		Brown, WillieWillie Brown	January 8, 1996	January 7, 2004		Democratic
42		Newsom, GavinGavin Newsom	January 8, 2004	January 10, 2011		Democratic
43		Lee, EdEd Lee	January 11, 2011	December 12, 2017		Democratic
44		Farrell, MarkMark Farrell	January 23, 2018	July 11, 2018		Democratic
45		Breed, LondonLondon Breed	July 11, 2018	January 8, 2025		Democratic
46		Daniel Lurie	January 8, 2025	Incumbent		Democratic

Facts About San Francisco Mayors

So far, 44 different people have served as San Francisco mayor. However, there have been 45 mayoral terms because Charles James Brenham served two terms that were not in a row.

The mayor who served the longest was James Rolph. He was mayor for over 18 years! He was very popular and helped San Francisco grow. During his time, the city's transit system expanded, the Civic Center was built, and the city hosted the World's Fair. The shortest term was Charles Boxton, who was mayor for only eight days.

Three mayors have died while in office: James Otis, George Moscone, and Ed Lee.

Dianne Feinstein and London Breed are the only women who have served as mayor. Both became mayor when the previous mayor left office, and then they were also elected by voters. Willie Brown and London Breed are the only African Americans to serve as mayor. Ed Lee was the only Asian American mayor.

Thirteen mayors were born in San Francisco. Four mayors were born in other countries, including Frank McCoppin and P.H. McCarthy from what is now Ireland, Adolph Sutro from Germany, and George Christopher from Greece.

This list does not include people who were only "acting mayors" for a short time when the mayor was out of town.