San Francisco's ousted district attorney won't run again

There will be no Chesa Boudin rematch this year.

The former San Francisco district attorney announced on Thursday that he would not run to wrest back the seat he lost in a June recall election, averting a second bruising clash over criminal justice.

“I am choosing to put my family first: I will not be running for office in 2022,” Boudin said in a tweet.

Voters ousted Boudin by a broad ten-point margin, vindicating recall backers who argued the progressive prosecutor had undermined public safety with overly lenient charging decisions. The race tested a national reform movement and reflected deepening public anxiety about crime and homelessness. Wealthy interests poured in money, outspending progressive groups.

But some of Boudin’s political allies believed he might seek to regain his seat — in part because of who occupies it now. San Francisco Mayor London Breed replaced Boudin with Brooke Jenkins, who had served as a prosecutor under Boudin until she resigned and became a prominent public face of the recall campaign.

Jenkins has articulated a starkly different vision from Boudin, criticizing policies like his blanket ban on charging juveniles as adults and his use of pretrial diversion. She has cleaned house by dismissing numerous prosecutors. She also broke with Boudin's record this week by rescinding a series of drug plea deals extended under Boudin, saying San Francisco needed to crack down on drug dealers, winning an amen from Breed.

Boudin said in his Twitter announcement that he was “gravely concerned by what I’ve seen from the current, appointed District Attorney.”

“We have heard no assurances that the successful programs we’ve implemented will continue, and indeed, we see worrying signs every day as progress is rolled back,” Boudin said.

Without Boudin in the wings, Jenkins has a clearer path to holding onto her post in November. She would subsequently be up for a full four-year term.