Mark Sanchez First to Qualify for Public Financing

From BeyondChron:

Sanchez, currently President of the School Board, became the first Supervisor candidate in 2008 to collect enough private donations to qualify for public funds.

The District 9 Supervisor’s race is not until November, but Mark Sanchez has already qualified for public funds for the contest. The Ethics Commission certified on February 13 that he had received qualifying contributions totaling $5,000 from at least 75 residents of the City, thus making him eligible to receive public funds. Sanchez will receive an initial public grant of $10,000, and can receive up to $87,500 under San Francisco’s public financing law.

Sanchez’s support reflects a strategy to reach out to diverse constituencies, using a local model used by his strong supporter, Matt Gonzalez. A good example of Sanchez’s approach occurred last fall, when Mark Leno heard false rumors circulating that he had already agreed to endorse one of Sanchez’s opponents in the race.

Leno met with Sanchez, and after the meeting the incumbent School Board President decided to endorse Leno. Sanchez made this endorsement despite charges among some progressives that Leno was not the most “left” candidate, preferring, as Matt Gonzalez has done, to make his own assessment of who was the best candidate in the race.