Democrat mayoral candidate Mark Farrell last month vowed to request assistance from the California National Guard to help San Francisco in the fight against open-air drug markets if he was elected, Politico reported.
Farrell, who briefly served as San Francisco’s interim mayor in 2018, is seeking to oust Democrat Mayor London Breed by campaigning from the right.
His call for “more armed California National Guard” may strike a nerve in the typically liberal progressive city that has begun to emphasize tough-on-crime policies in recent years as residents grow increasingly frustrated by the rise in drug use, homelessness, and retail thefts.
Farrell disputes the notion that his aggressive policies are ideologically driven. Instead, he views them as a necessary reaction to the city’s skyrocketing drug-related deaths.
He told Politico that there was nothing “progressive or compassionate” about permitting record overdose deaths in San Francisco each year.
Farrell said he was inspired partly by the aggressive actions of other blue cities to deal with urban challenges, including Governor Kathy Hochul sending the National Guard to patrol the New York City subways.
According to Politico, since all of Breed’s opponents are liberal Democrats like her, they have opted to set themselves apart by proposing more conservative-sounding plans like increasing law enforcement and forcing drug addicts into treatment.
Meanwhile, Breed had accused Farrell of being too conservative for progressive San Francisco. Her campaign spokesman Joe Arellano said if Farrell moves any further right, he would have to register Republican.
Like Farrell, mayoral candidate Daniel Lurie, also a Democrat, has introduced a series of tough policies aimed at San Francisco’s crime and drug crises. Late last month, Lurie said he would enact a “state of emergency” of the city’s fentanyl crisis to bring in more state and federal funds.
Not to be outdone, Mayor Breed is accusing her opponents of copying her plans to combat crime and drug addiction.
