America’s best minds are currently sifting through the aftermath of the results of Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, asking how it all went wrong for Francesca Hong. As I am not among them, I thus feel empowered to duck away from the crowd for a brief safari to a place that Republicans rarely pay much attention to, if any: San Francisco. You ever see that film Gorillas in the Mist? Grab your khakis and Wellington boots: It’s time for an excursion into progressive primatology, as we journey to the jungles of the deepest Bay Area to explore the surprisingly spicy race in California’s eleventh district to replace the all-powerful former speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi.
As you all know, Pelosi has represented San Francisco in the House of Representatives since 1987. (Her district is almost entirely co-terminous with the city.) She was always untouchable in the seat — the story of how it got passed down over the years to her is its own California political legend — and her position was beyond question after rising to the top of Democratic House leadership. So ambitious city pols have had to bide their time, as they eye the aging party leader like vultures, waiting for her to retire. (She has taken her sweet time, continuing to serve two terms in the seat after handing the leadership position over to Hakeem Jeffries — and there may have been a stubborn calculation behind this, as we shall see.)
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