Five seats on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors were up for election Tuesday. With most votes tallied, the results showed Catherine Stefani leading in District Two, Gordon Mar leading in District Four, Matt Haney winning in District Six, Rafael Mandelman coasting to victory in District Eight and Shamann Walton holding a commanding lead in District 10.

Back to Gallery SF Board of Supervisors: Stefani, Mar, Walton lead.... 10 1 of 10 Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle 2 of 10 Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle 3 of 10 Photo: Jana Asenbrennerova / Special to The Chronicle 4 of 10 Photo: Paul Chinn / The Chronicle 5 of 10 Photo: Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle 6 of 10 Photo: Mason Trinca / Special to The Chronicle 7 of 10 Photo: Jana Asenbrennerova / Special to The Chronicle 8 of 10 Photo: Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle 9 of 10 Photo: Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle 10 of 10 Photo: Santiago Mejia / The Chronicle



















The results are based on an early Wednesday morning tally of San Francisco’s ranked-choice system, which allows voters to designate their second and third choices. Thousands of ballots still need to be counted, however, so the final results could shift in the coming days.

District Two

In District Two, incumbent Supervisor Stefani was leading with 42 percent of the vote to Nick Josefowitz’s 37 percent.

Stefani was appointed to the board by former Mayor Mark Farrell in January. She has worked in City Hall in various positions for about 12 years, mostly as a legislative aide — first to Michela Alioto-Pier, then to Farrell. She has signaled a moderate track record on the board and her campaign to keep the District Two seat was endorsed by most of the board members, as well as Mayor London Breed.

Just after 9 p.m., as early results showed her leading Josefowitz, Stefani arrived at an election night party at Silver Cloud on Lombard Street to cheers and hoots from the crowd.

“We have not yet won, but I like what I see,” Stefani said. “We’ve planned, we’ve focused, we’ve executed.”

District Four

Mar had an advantage on Jessica Ho for the open seat in District Four, which encompasses the Sunset District, by a wide margin after the ranked-choice votes were tallied. He captured 34.8 percent of the vote to her 26 percent.

This was the district’s first election without an incumbent since 2006.

Mar, a progressive, will likely take over from Supervisor Katy Tang — who decided not to run for re-election — and flip a seat that has long been held by a moderate. The three main candidates were Mar, a longtime community activist; Ho, Tang’s legislative aide; and Trevor McNeil, a public school teacher.

Mar, 56, has a progressive track record. He is executive director of Jobs with Justice, a coalition of over more than 30 unions, and community and faith-based organizations. His run for supervisor received about $168,000 in third-party support from independent expenditure committees, including the San Francisco Labor Council Labor & Neighbor Independent Expenditure Political Action Committee.

Dozens of Mar supporters gathered at the Sunset’s United Irish Cultural Center as the results trickled in, and people repeatedly checked their phones as the mood remained cautiously optimistic.

The race to represent the quiet, family-oriented neighborhood grew extremely contentious between Ho and Mar in the last few weeks of the campaign, as the two sparred over neighborhood ties and campaign contributions.

District Six

Haney won District Six with 56.8 percent of the vote from neighborhoods that include the Tenderloin, SoMa and Mission Bay. After ranked-choice votes were counted, Haney held a hefty lead over former Planning Commissioner Christine Johnson with 37 percent of the vote. Housing activist Sonja Trauss finished in last place.

Johnson and Trauss teamed up, unsuccessfully, to try and take advantage of San Francisco’s ranked-choice voting system. They urged voters to pick them as their first and second choices in an attempt to beat Haney.

As the night wore on, Trauss sat on a couch at her SoMa campaign headquarters, surrounded by family and supporters who checked their phones and tried to comfort her. Trauss, who had voracious support from the YIMBY Action (Yes in My Backyard) organization, was disappointed by the results.

“I was surprised the polling was so wrong,” she said, noting that three separate polls had her in a “dead heat” with her competitors.

Meanwhile, the mood at Haney’s election party a few blocks away was celebratory: music, dancing and dimmed lights at the Calle-11 nightclub.

Compared to Trauss and Johnson, Haney was considered the progressive in the race. As supervisor, he said, he plans to prioritize immediate solutions in District Six, such as providing more street cleaners, shelter beds, Navigation Centers and supportive housing and services for the mentally ill.

District Eight

Mandelman, District Eight’s supervisor, easily won re-election Tuesday night with more than 91 percent of the vote. He faced thin opposition from Lawrence “Stark” Dagesse, who said he agreed with Mandelman on most issues.

The district includes the Castro, Glen Park and Noe Valley.

District 10

In District 10, Walton held almost 42 percent of the vote as the ranked-choice system ran its course. He will likely take over for Supervisor Malia Cohen.

The district — which includes Bayview-Hunters Point, Potrero Hill and Dogpatch — is in the midst of dramatic change, with a number of mixed-use development projects in the works. The Shipyard development on the site of the former Hunters Point Naval Shipyard has been mired in a scandal over residual radioactive contamination.

Walton, former school board president, was leading against Tony Kelly with 37 percent of the vote. Theo Ellington came in third.

A celebratory mood filled the air Tuesday night at Walton’s election party at Laughing Monk Brewing.

“This has been a long 18-month journey, but in reality we’ve been working hard in this district for decades,” Walton told a cheering crowd of his supporters. “This is an amazing opportunity for all of us, to have the first black man elected to the District 10 seat.”

Chronicle staff writers Cynthia Dizikes and Joaquin Palomino contributed to this report.

Trisha Thadani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @TrishaThadani