By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
(from left) Gay California State Sen. Scott Weiner; Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi
The former House speaker has not yet said whether she will run for reelection.
California state Sen. Scott Wiener, one of the country’s most influential LGBTQ+ lawmakers, is preparing to run for Congress. It’s a move that would set up a dramatic generational contest against Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who has represented San Francisco in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1987.
Keep up with the latest in LGBTQ+ news and politics. Sign up for The Advocate's email newsletter.
As first reported by The San Francisco Standard and The New York Times, Wiener plans to launch his campaign formally later this month. Pelosi, 85, has not said whether she will seek reelection in 2026, but Wiener, 55, appears to be moving ahead regardless.
Wiener’s candidacy has been years in the making. He filed paperwork for a congressional committee in 2023 and has raised more than $1 million. The Standard reports that Wiener’s advisers have begun mapping out an aggressive campaign emphasizing his legislative record on housing, public transit, and LGBTQ+ rights. As a state senator, he authored the law making California a “refuge state” for transgender people seeking gender-affirming care banned in other states, a policy that made him a national target of far-right attacks.
Related: California state Sen. Scott Wiener served a sexy leather daddy look at Folsom Street Fair
Pelosi remains an iconic figure within the Democratic Party and in San Francisco politics. The first woman to serve as speaker of the House, and a staunch ally to the LGBTQ+ community, she has guided her caucus through the defining battles of the Obama and Biden eras. But Wiener’s expected challenge highlights how the city that helped launch Pelosi’s career has changed: more tech-driven, more progressive on social issues, and less deferential to the political establishment.
He is not the only challenger. Saikat Chakrabarti, the former chief of staff to New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, has already entered the race and invested more than $700,000 of his own money.
Related: Nancy Pelosi shouts ‘shut up’ at far-right reporter who asked accusatory January 6 question
In a text message to The Advocate, Pelosi’s spokesperson Ian Krager said, “Speaker Pelosi is fully focused on her mission to win the Yes on 50 special election in California on November 4th. She urges all Californians to join in that mission on the path to Democrats taking back the House.” Proposition 50 would redraw congressional lines as a firewall against the recent mid-decade gerrymandering that Texas lawmakers implemented to gain more seats in the 2026 midterm election.
Related: State Senator Scott Wiener Goes to Folsom Street Fair, GOP Loses It
California’s top-two primary system means the two highest vote-getters, regardless of party, advance to the general election. Pelosi has coasted to victory for decades, earning 81 percent of the vote in 2024, but a challenge from Wiener could mark a historic inflection point for the city’s political future: a contest between legacy and renewal, institutional mastery and the restless energy of a new generation of Democrats determined to define what comes next.
Charlie Kirk DID say stoning gay people was the 'perfect law' — and these other heinous quotes