Scott Wiener prevails in race to succeed retiring Pelosi

Democrat Scott Wiener is poised to win the California seat to succeed Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), after his opponent San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan conceded Wednesday evening in a statement according to local Fox affiliate KTVU.

Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ), The Hill’s partner, has not called the race yet, but Wiener leads Chan by about 11 points with 62 percent of votes reported.

Wiener, a California state senator for more than 10 years, beat out Chan for California’s 11th Congressional District in what was expected to be a close race. Polling in recent weeks showed Wiener with a slight edge.

Pelosi, who is retiring after nearly four decades in the House, endorsed Chan, though Wiener also received high-profile endorsements from California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D), California State Treasurer Fiona Ma (D) and the San Francisco Chronicle.

Wiener will represent nearly all of San Francisco, where he has lived since 1997 after growing up in New Jersey.

As a state senator since 2016, Wiener represented San Francisco and northern San Mateo County and served as chair of the Standing Committee on Elections and Constitutional Amendments and the Select Committee on Bay Area Public Transit. He also served on the Transportation, Judiciary and Privacy, Digital Technologies, and Consumer Protection Private Safety committees.

The progressive lawmaker authored more than 100 bills that became law. His policies often focused on housing affordability, public transportation, LGBTQ rights and climate.

Wiener gained national attention for proposing some of the first safety regulations for artificial intelligence in 2024.

Prior to his time in the California Senate, Wiener served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, along with spending about 15 years practicing law at the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office and in private practice.

After attending Harvard University, Wiener also was a law clerk for Justice Alan Handler on the New Jersey Supreme Court.