Rafael Mandelman

Rafael Mandelman is an American attorney and politician currently serving on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, representing District 8.

Rafael Mandelman
Mandelman in 2019
Member of the
San Francisco Board of Supervisors
from District 8
Assumed office
July 11, 2018
MayorLondon Breed
Preceded byJeff Sheehy
Personal details
BornSan Francisco, California, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
Residence(s)San Francisco, California
EducationYale University (BA), Harvard University (MPP), University of California, Berkeley (JD)
OccupationPolitician
ProfessionAttorney
Websiterafaelmandelman.com

Prior to his election to the Board of Supervisors, he served on the City College of San Francisco Board of Trustees. He was a deputy city attorney in Oakland, California in the Redevelopment, Real Estate & Rent Unit in the Advisory Division of the City Attorney's Office.[1]

Early life

Mandelman grew up in Laguna Beach, California with his mother. His parents divorced when he was three. His mother had various mental disorders and regularly in and out of the hospital. At 11 years old, his relatives convinced Mandelman to move to San Francisco, where his paternal grandmother was. But she was too old to take care of him so he lived between homes.[2] Mandelman attended Brandeis Hillel Day School and Lick-Wilmerding High School.[2]

He studied at Yale University. He got a masters in public policy at Harvard University and a J.D. degree from UC Berkeley.[3]

Political Career

Mandelman ran to represent District 8 in the 2010 San Francisco Board of Supervisors election, placing second against Scott Wiener.[2]

Mandelman was elected to the City College of San Francisco Board of Trustees in 2012.[4]

San Francisco Supervisor

Mandelman defeated incumbent Jeff Sheehy to represent District 8 in the June 2018 San Francisco Board of Supervisors special election, replacing Sheehy for the duration of the term.[5] Mandelman went on to win in the November general election.[6]

In 2019, he authored an ordinance to create the Castro LGBTQ Cultural District; the ordinance was passed unanimously by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.[7][8]

Positions on housing

In 2019, Mandelman supported a resolution that expressed opposition to California Senate Bill 50, which mandates denser housing near “job-rich” areas and transit hubs in California.[9]

In 2021, Mandelman proposed to allow construction of fourplexes on single lots in San Francisco with the intent to increase the supply of housing, reduce rents, and alleviate the housing the shortage in San Francisco.[10] Mandelman's aide explained that the bill was intended to preempt California Senate Bill 9, which was a new version of California Senate Bill 50 which Mandelman opposed.[11]

In 2021, Mandelman opposed the construction of a 500-unit apartment complex on a Nordstrom's valet parking lot.[11][12] He endorsed David Campos for California Assembly District 17. The San Francisco Chronicle tied this endorsement to Mandelman's vote to block the 500-unit housing construction project in Supervisor Matt Haney's district in San Francisco; Haney was running for the same district seat as Campos. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, it is out of the norm for supervisors to block projects in the district of another supervisor if that supervisor approves of the project.[12]

In 2022, Mandelman has pushed for legislation to encourage the development of new fourplexes.[13]

Personal life

Mandelman came out as gay while at Yale University.[4]

References
  1. "About Us". Oakland City Attorney. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  2. Knight, Heather (June 9, 2018). "Rafael Mandelman wants to take action on homeless problem". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  3. "Rafael Mandelman Once Again Throws His Hat In The District 8 Supervisor Ring: SFist". SFist - San Francisco News, Restaurants, Events, & Sports. April 20, 2017. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  4. Smith, Stu. "Profiles of Compassion and Courage: Rafael Mandelman". SF Bay Times. Retrieved February 10, 2019.
  5. Swan, Rachel; Alexander, Kurtis (June 6, 2018). "Mandelman ousts incumbent Sheehy in SF's District Eight". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  6. Staff, Mission Local (November 7, 2018). "Election 2018: Final tally from Election Night — Prop. C wins, Haney declares victory". Mission Local. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  7. "San Francisco to Create Castro LGBTQ Cultural District". San Francisco Bay Times. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  8. "Castro LGBTQ Cultural District Designation Aims To Preserve History". KPIX-TV. June 26, 2019. Retrieved June 30, 2019.
  9. "Resolution Opposing Wiener's SB 50 Housing Bill Heads to Full Board". SF Weekly. April 4, 2019. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  10. Knight, Heather (July 24, 2021). "Go big or go home: S.F. supervisor juices housing legislation to allow fourplexes on every single-family lot". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
  11. "San Francisco Planning Commission Approves Citywide Upzoning". The Real Deal New York. November 20, 2021. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  12. Dineen, J. K. (October 27, 2021). "Why did S.F. supervisors vote against a project to turn a parking lot into 500 housing units?". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  13. Gardiner, Dustin; Morris, J. D. (March 7, 2022). "San Francisco may embrace fourplexes — while undercutting part of state density law". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
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