The Great American Music Hall was a bit sedate when I showed up for the Yes on A party. The measure to fund teacher salaries with a parcel tax needed a two-thirds vote and it was a few points shy, but moving up since the conservative absentee ballots were counted. “I wish it weren’t this close,” school superintendent Carlos Garcia told me, lamenting the high vote threshold. “It’s too bad. But I still have faith in San Francisco.”
A few minutes later, that faith was rewarded when the new results came in: 69.6% yes with 88.8% of votes counted. The room erupted.
School board member Hydra Mendoza started to loudly whoop it up into the microphone, calling up her colleagues to say a few words and help celebrate. “These numbers show that people believe in public education. They believe in what we’re doing,” Garcia said. School board member Mark Sanchez recognized the measure’s chief fundraiser: “Let’s give a big shout out to Warren Hellman.”
Mendoza closed: “Turn on the dance music. Wooooo!”