It’s debate season, baby! The mayoral candidates are getting ready for battle on Monday after their first fight in the arena last week. (Will Mark Farrell pick Alcatraz as his favorite San Francisco tradition again? Stay tuned.)

In-person tickets for the second debate are sold out, but don’t feel like you have to watch the live stream alone at home. The Power Play team is hosting a Mayoral Debate Watch Party at The Standard’s offices in SoMa with beer, pizza and some cheeky post-game commentary from Senior Editor Annie Gaus and Senior Reporter Josh Koehn. (FYI, there won’t be a newsletter on June 19 because of Juneteenth.)

Click here for exclusive Power Play-discounted tickets. 

While our analysis of the first debate showed no clear winner, one of the candidates is getting practice taking heat on stage. Board of Supervisors President Aaron Peskin celebrated his 60th birthday on Thursday with a mayoral campaign fundraiser that doubled as a roast inside the cavernous St. Joseph Art’s Society space on Howard Street. The gorgeous event space’s dreadful acoustics made many of the zingers directed at Peskin nearly impossible to hear.

Notable guests among a distinctly older group of supporters included former Mayor Willie Brown, Malcolm Yeung, the executive director of the Chinatown Community Development Center, and Floyd Rollins, president of the San Francisco firefighters union.

Rollins told Power Play that the firefighters likely won’t decide who to endorse until August, but he’s well aware that his group’s blessing could be crucial in determining the outcome of the mayor’s race. In 2018, Mayor London Breed had the backing of the firefighters—whose campaign canvassing was funded by real estate interests—and she surged to a special election victory over former Supervisor Jane Kim and former state Sen. Mark Leno.

Peskin may have been the guest of honor, but his doppelganger was the real show-stopper. Norton the First, Emperor of the U.S., Protector of Mexico (that’s the whole title, seriously), received almost as much attention while holding court with drag queen The Countess Lola Montez. Both are supporting Peskin’s bid for mayor.

“I’m voting for him because he’s progressive,” Norton said. “He knows how this city works.”

Montez added, “He’s grassroots and I like his ideas on San Francisco. I watched [Wednesday’s] debate and it verified everything I thought.”

DBI DRAMA: The Department of Building Inspection is back on the ropes. On Friday, the Ethics Commission fined senior housing inspector Luis Barahona for signing off on Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation (TNDC) buildings.

Barahona was serving on the nonprofit’s board when his inspections of the buildings were taking place, which investigators found happened a total of 12 times. Authorities said they did not find any evidence that Barahona gave favorable treatment to the nonprofit, but they’re still penalizing him $2,500. 

Barahona deferred comment to a DBI spokesperson who did not respond to a The Standard’s request. The department has been the subject of recent scandals, including a Standard investigation that revealed more shenanigans in March.

D3 SHAKEUP: The race to succeed Peskin in District 3 has undergone major changes this month as one candidate drops out and another jumps in. 

Jconr B. Ortega, an outspoken critic of other candidates, ended his campaign amid domestic violence accusations, while Wendy Ha Chau, an Asian American attorney, filed to run in the already crowded race. Chau is no political newcomer. She made an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic County Central Committee in 2016 and has been active with the Chinese American Democratic Club, a moderate political group.

Chau's entrance into the race will likely create more uncertainty for the D3 contest as Danny Sauter has the strongest moderate backing at the moment. Additionally, as an Asian American woman, Chau may be able to woo some of Sharon Lai's supporters and other voters in Chinatown.

BETRAYAL … OR NOT? The school board race is heating up with some surprising endorsements. Three moderate candidates with relatively low name ID—John Jersin, Parag Gupta and Jaime Huling—won endorsements from the progressive teacher’s union United Educators of San Francisco, along with the blessing of incumbent progressive Matt Alexander. 

Unexpectedly, the four formed an alliance that has angered some moderate parents who feel betrayed and suspect some sort of backroom deal. The SF Guardians group, which led the school board recall movement in 2022, has subsequently rescinded its endorsement of Jersin and Gupta and will redo its picks. Jersin denies any shadiness and said he understands that “people have feelings about new relationships” and is asking both sides to work together. 

PUC VEHICLE ACCIDENT: A collision between a biker and a Public Utilities Commission vehicle resulted in the death of a man in the Bayview. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition claims the cyclist got doored, though more details will likely surface in the coming weeks. A similar incident resulted in a $15 million settlement in 2014 over a woman killed by a Parks and Recreation Department vehicle.

PELOSI PROTECTION: San Francisco’s cops will receive $1 million per year from the Capitol Police force to station officers outside the Speaker Emerita’s brick-walled mansion in Pacific Heights around the clock.