GrowSF Polls District 8 Voters on a Manny Yekutiel Comeback Days After He Quit the Race, Drawing Sharp Criticism

Less than a week after Manny Yekutiel dropped out of the race for San Francisco's District 8 supervisor seat, a political group that once backed him is asking voters whether they would still rank him.

The poll

The survey, first reported by The San Francisco Standard, asked District 8 residents: "If Manny Yekutiel were to resume his campaign, where would you rank him on your ballot, if at all?" A second question reminded respondents that Mayor Daniel Lurie, several supervisors and other officials had withdrawn their endorsements after the latest allegations against him, and then asked the same thing again.

GrowSF, a moderate group allied with Lurie, confirmed it paid for the poll. The group pulled its own endorsement of Yekutiel and says on its voter guide that it is not endorsing anyone in District 8. In a statement, GrowSF director Steven Bacio said the group wants to understand where voters stand "after such a substantial shake-up." He told the Chronicle the group "will not spend a dime" to support Yekutiel.

Why he left, and why he's still on the ballot

Yekutiel, who owns the cafe and event space Manny's in the Mission, suspended his campaign last Thursday after the Standard published additional sexual assault allegations against him. The Chronicle reported that two men said he groped them without their consent at a Pride party three years ago. Yekutiel has denied the allegations. His name still appears on ballots, which began arriving in voters' mailboxes this week. His spokesperson told the Standard the campaign remains suspended.

GrowSF's earlier polling helps explain the interest. In a survey the group ran Aug. 8 to 13, Yekutiel led with 47%, followed by Gary McCoy at 15%, patent attorney Michael Nguyen at 12% and Darshini Patel at 2%, the Standard reported.

The backlash

McCoy, a former aide to Nancy Pelosi, is now widely seen as the front-runner. Supervisors Connie Chan, Chyanne Chen, Jackie Fielder and Myrna Melgar, all McCoy supporters, condemned the poll on Wednesday evening, according to the Chronicle.

McCoy campaign spokesperson Catie Stewart told the Standard that GrowSF has the right to "light money on fire" for a candidate accused by three people, but said former Yekutiel voters she and the campaign talk to are no longer backing him.

San Francisco uses ranked-choice voting, so District 8 voters can still rank any of the four names on the ballot. Election Day is Nov. 3.