San Francisco district attorney Chesa Boudin, a progressive prosecutor, faces a rare recall vote in the majority Democratic city, jeopardizing his mission of criminal justice reform.

The recall effort is being led by a group called San Franciscans for Public Safety , which gathered over 50,000 signatures needed to put the recall on the ballot. If Boudin is removed from his position in the June 7 election, mayor London Breed would appoint an interim DA until voters weighed in again in the November election.

Boudin was elected to his post in 2019 as part of a movement of progressive prosecutors across the country including Larry Krasner in Philadelphia pushing back on decades of tough-on-crime policies that increased mass incarceration and disproportionately criminalized Black and Latinx people.

Since entering office, Boudin a former public defender whose parents spent decades in prison has kept campaign promises of eliminating cash bail , holding police accountable and diverting people from the criminal legal system.

Supporters of the recall have claimed crime is on the rise in the city and blamed the progressive DA. Theyve pointed to high-profile incidents that garnered significant local media attention, such as a robbery at Louis Vuitton in Union Square last year and a drunk driver released on parole who hit and killed two women on New Years Eve. Some San Francisco residents have reported feeling unsafe due to a perceived increase in property crime, such as car thefts and home burglaries.

Its clear that San Franciscans have had enough and want a new course for our city one that doesnt include Boudin as district attorney, said Mary Jung, chair of the recall campaign. She pointed to a rise in homicides and property crimes, saying residents have had enough of Boudins failed leadership.

But a widespread sentiment among residents of the city that crime is worsening is not supported by data.

A San Francisco Chronicle analysis found violent crime in SF actually declined during the pandemic. While murders and shootings increased in recent years, this tracks with trends across major U.S. cities. Most property crimes are also trending toward their pre-pandemic levels.

Boudins team has slammed the recall effort as a political tool used to reverse a fairly won election.

The recall campaigns rhetoric is not just false, its dangerously misleading, said Julie Edwards, spokesperson for the campaign supporting Boudin against the recall.

It tells voters theres a singular answer to any concern about public safety and recall is the only solution, which distracts from the hard work and real solutions we need to make San Francisco safer.