Scott Wiener Wins Pelosi’s House Seat After Chan Concedes

California state Senator Scott Wiener won the race to succeed retiring Representative Nancy Pelosi in San Francisco after fellow Democrat Connie Chan conceded on Wednesday evening. The preliminary count put Wiener on 55.5% and Chan on 44.5%, with ballots still uncounted. Chan said her campaign had reviewed the results and remaining ballots and no longer saw a clear route to victory. She congratulated Wiener. In his own response, Wiener said, “Thank you, San Francisco.” He expressed gratitude for voters’ trust and thanked Chan for the campaign. Pelosi, who had supported Chan, congratulated Wiener and offered to help with the transition. He is due to take office in January. The two candidates had debated U.S. military support for Israel at an October 1 encounter at KQED’s San Francisco studios. Chan called for a full arms embargo. A moderator contrasted that stance with Wiener’s support for Iron Dome and opposition to additional offensive weapons, then asked whether his position would change after Israel’s election. Wiener said the United States should work toward a Palestinian state living alongside Israel in peace. He argued for a future without Hamas and with Israel’s right-wing government replaced by leaders committed to peaceful coexistence. The debate brought the two Democrats together to discuss how they would represent San Francisco in Congress.