Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin officially enters the mayoral race

（SAN FRANCISCO) As expected, Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin officially announced his run for San Francisco Mayor in Chinatown on April 6.

As Peskin enter the race, he also becomes the only progressive candidate among top candidates who will compete to be the next mayor of San Francisco in the November election.

Peskin is one of the latest candidates among 50 of them submitting papers to the Department of Elections for the mayoral race as of April 6.

Peskin, who has been the Chinatown/North Beach Supervisor for almost 16 years, picked Portsmouth Square in Chinatown as the venue to hold a 750-people rally to kick off his mayoral campaign.

Among the Chinese American supporters who attended the rally to show supports for Peskin were mostly progressive community leaders and activists, including Supervisor Connie Chan, former Supervisors Norman Yee, Sandra Lee Fewer, Eric Mar and his twin brother Gordon Mar, Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club President Jeffery Kwong, Rose Pak Democratic Club President Jeremy Lee, community leader Rev. Norman Fong, and Community Tenants Association President Wing Ho Leung.

In Peskin's 30-minute remark at the rally, Peskin focused on a wide variety of issues that San Francisco now faced with challenges.

"The first step towards healing San Francisco is to make the collective decision to heal ourselves. This means working together instead of fighting. It means truly addressing crime, fentanyl overdoses and homelessness – not just weaponizing them for political campaigns," Peskin said in the beginning of his speech.

Peskin also believed he had the ability to bring people together and resolve differences.

On crime and public safety, Peskin was critical of sitting Mayor London Breed. "But what we have seen from this administration and its allies is an effort to make people feel afraid, for their own political gain. We have seen an administration try to solve crime by press release, instead of policy," Peskin said.

"To make this city safe, we need a change," Peskin continued. "Right here in this neighborhood, I have stood up for safety. Stood up against hate crimes. Brought Cantonese-speaking police foot patrols to walk the beat. Expanded community ambassadors and strengthened pedestrian safety."

"For me, public safety is a progressive value. I voted to support increased police budgets, police overtime, greater police staffing, and an emergency declaration in the Tenderloin," Peskin said.

Peskin supported arresting fentanyl dealers. "But arresting drug users, and doing nothing more, is a cynical and dangerous policy that results in more overdoses, and not more treatment for addiction," said Peskin.

"As Mayor, I will establish a new tool for fighting corruption and cleaning up City Hall – an Inspector General, under the Controller, with the power of subpoena and investigation," Peskin spoke about the corruption in City Hall.