Mayor of San Francisco skips debates and receives criticism

Breed's campaign hit back, pointing out that her two strongest challengers, Lurie and Farrell, are out of work. They said they “desperately crave more debates so they can stand on the stage and repeat the same toothless arguments over and over again.”

Her campaign team noted that the mayor participated in several debates earlier in the campaign season, including one hosted by KRON4. Breed is also expected to participate in a Sept. 19 debate organized by the San Francisco Chronicle and KQED.

However, she will not participate in a debate on September 25 hosted by The Standard and KGO-TV/ABC7.

Jane Kim, state director of the Working Families Party in California, who ran against Breed in 2018, fondly recalled how voters viewed her own performance in the debate positively, even though she ultimately lost the election.

Kim said people tell her, “I thought that way about you before, but what I've heard from you and your expertise about the city has really impressed me. And I'm going to vote for you now.”

Given Breed's lead in the polls, she may no longer need to impress the audience at the debates.