Ahsha Safaí

Ahsha Safaí (born 1973) is an Iranian-American elected official in San Francisco, California. He serves as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors representing Supervisorial District 11.

District 11 includes the neighborhoods of Excelsior, Ingleside, Oceanview, Merced Heights, Ingleside Heights, Mission Terrace, Outer Mission, Cayuga, and Crocker Amazon.

Early life, education and career
Safaí was born in Iran in 1973, and moved with his mother to Cambridge, Massachusetts at the age of five. He attended Northeastern University, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in political science and African-American studies. After working his way through college, he later went on to receive his master's degree in city planning from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Safaí interned in Bill Clinton’s White House and then as a math tutor for a civil rights program focused on students in need. He went on to work with then mayors Willie Brown and Gavin Newsom on major neighborhood and citywide services for San Francisco to deliver critical resources to low-income communities. Working with Mayor Brown, Ahsha helped protect immigrants from losing their housing and advanced key gang violence prevention strategies. And he helped bring vital resources like a new teen center and new childcare center to public housing residents. With Mayor Newsom, Safaí connected young adults, formerly incarcerated, and homeless people to jobs that supported local small businesses by keeping streets clean, planting trees and gardens, and revitalizing public spaces.

Safaí spent nearly a decade as a labor organizer, representing frontline workers like janitors, sanitation workers, delivery drivers, and grocery store employees. In San Francisco, Safaí served as political director for the janitors union local. He helped raise San Francisco’s minimum wage to $15/hour, secured better wages and working conditions for frontline workers, passed a Retail Workers’ Bill of Rights, and fought tirelessly to deliver Free City College for all San Franciscans.

San Francisco Board of Supervisors
In 2008, he ran for the District 11 seat on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors against John Avalos, losing by a close margin. Safaí ran again in 2016, successfully, replacing Avalos who was termed out of office. During the 2016 race, he ran against Kimberly Alvarenga; Safaí was endorsed by the San Francisco Chronicle.

Housing: In 2021, Safaí supported a proposal to streamline housing production in San Francisco. During his tenure, Safaí passed laws to build affordable housing for seniors and low-income families. He recently led the effort to pass Prop C, utilizing audits to ensure homeless funds are spent helping get people off the streets.

Small businesses: He has directly assisted small businesses facing challenges starting and doing business in San Francisco. His efforts eliminated burdensome fees for the expansion of parklets and outdoor dining during COVID and helped rein in delivery companies from gouging small businesses.

Public Safety: In 2023, Safaí introduced a law to bring more foot patrols to neighborhoods to increase safety, and passed another law to allow Deputy Sheriffs to patrol our commercial corridors.

In July 2021, he was among the first supervisors to take a stand against organized retail crime. After a mass looting event at Union Square a few months later, he observed the impact on the city's budget: "If retail frontline workers don't feel safe, if shoppers don't feel safe, stores will ultimately shut down. If stores shut down, we lose sales tax." He subsequently pushed for a permitting process for street vendors, to cut down on fencing of stolen goods.

Homelessness: In 2019, Safaí initiated a pilot program to turn a parking lot by the Balboa Park BART station into a "triage center" for people who live in their vehicles. The center offered showers and security for up to 30 vehicles, and allowed temporary residents to stay for up to 90 days while awaiting permanent housing.

Mental Health: In September 2021, Safaí launched the Treatment, Recovery, and Prevention Academy to treat those with drug addictions on parole or awaiting trial with a structured, abstinence-based program.

Government Oversight: Safaí has held the city accountable for homelessness and nonprofit spending and tackled corruption in City Hall. He led the effort to protect the City’s ethics oversight committee after the current mayor tried to cut its budget. He also passed a law requiring tough oversight on organizations receiving City funding after the FBI indicted several City department heads.

Education: In 2023, Safaí cosponsored the measure to give 8th grade students access to algebra. On April 17, 2023, Safaí marched alongside hundreds of San Francisco teachers and staff in support of a new contract. In June 2020, Supervisor Ahsha Safai announced $1 million to support up to 150 family childcare educators experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19. He has also fought to build a public library in his district neighborhood of Oceanview.

2024 San Francisco mayoral election
In May 2023, Safaí filed to run in the 2024 San Francisco mayoral election, challenging incumbent London Breed.

Personal life
Safaí, his wife Yadira, and their children live in San Francisco's Excelsior District.