\u201cI was so sad. I don\u2019t know why she\u2019s retiring,\u201d Sanchez said. \u201cShe is still working like she\u2019s young; she can still do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Others said retirement was the right move for Pelosi, who at 85 is among the oldest members of Congress.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think in general we\u2019re seeing a theme of a new guard coming in for the Democratic Party,\u201d said Aneil Marathi, a resident of the Mission who moved to the city a year ago. \u201cI think this is one of the better things that she\u2019s done \u2014 recognizing where the tide is going.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Pelosi was elected in 1987, her district was being ravaged by the HIV\/AIDS epidemic<\/a>. Her first speech on the House floor called on Congress to do more, and she set about increasing federal funding to fight the disease.<\/p>\n \u201cShe promoted legislation, funding, and programs for prevention, research, cure, and medical interventions to save lives,\u201d the San Francisco AIDS Foundation wrote in a statement. \u201cNo single member has been more relentless or more fearless in the face of HIV.\u201d<\/p>\n In a conversation with KQED\u2019s Political Breakdow<\/a>n last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom, San Francisco\u2019s former mayor, said Pelosi\u2019s impact cannot be overstated and will not easily be replaced.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can never take that for granted,\u201d Newsom said, adding, \u201cit will take 40, 50 years for someone to build the kind of credibility that she\u2019s built and the influence and the capacity to deliver that.\u201d<\/p>\n But some will try.<\/p>\n Open congressional seats are highly prized and don\u2019t come up very often, so when they do, they often attract a large field of ambitious politicians. In fact, when Pelosi ran in 1987, she was one of 14 candidates.<\/p>\n Even before Pelosi announced her retirement, two serious candidates had jumped into the race for her seat. One is former software engineer Saikat Chakrabarti<\/a>, a progressive who left Silicon Valley to work for Sen. Bernie Sanders\u2019 2016 presidential campaign, and later as chief of staff to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Chakrabarti, 39, said he was running to offer a new generation of leadership.<\/p>\n San Francisco state Sen. Scott Wiener<\/a>, one of the leading advocates for increasing housing development<\/a>, jumped in last month after initially saying he would wait until Pelosi announced her retirement.<\/p>\n Others could join the fray, including San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, a labor ally whose opposition to market-rate housing development and support for closing the Great Highway could appeal to the west side of the district.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.kqed.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2025\/10\/251024-NEWSOM-ON-PB-MD-08-KQED.jpg\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.kqed.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2025\/03\/250326-SAIKAT-CHAKRABARTI-ON-PB-MD-01-KQED-1.jpg\")