Daniel Lurie, who is one of the heirs to the Levi Strauss jeans company fortune, is now the San Francisco mayor-elect.
The Democrat, 47, was elected after defeating incumbent mayor London Breed, who conceded on Thursday, Nov. 7. Lurie self-funded his campaign with his mother, Miriam “Mimi” Haas. Lurie used $8.6 million of his own money, and Haas, 78, contributed an additional $1 million to the mayoral campaign, The New York Times, The Guardian and KTVU report.
Haas is a billionaire and the heir of Levi Strauss & Co. She was previously married to the late Peter E. Haas, the great-grandnephew of Levi Strauss, the founder of the eponymous denim company. Miriam was first married to rabbi Brian Lurie, with whom she welcomed Daniel and his brother Ari. In 1981, Miriam married Levi’s CEO Peter; the two remained together until his death in 2005, per Archives of American Art and the Center.
As of 2021, Miriam was worth $1.4 billion, per Forbes. She currently owns the largest stake in the denim company, with a total of 11%, per Nasdaq. The late Peter’s sister, Margaret E. Haas, and their cousin, Robert D. Haas, own 9.3% and 8.7% of the company’s shares, respectively. Seven of the top shareholders own 51% of the company.
Despite his family’s fortune, he refuted claims he was trying to buy the election. “No, you can’t buy an election in San Francisco. You’ve got to go out and earn every vote,” he told KTVU.
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Lurie previously founded the Tipping Point Community non-profit, which works to “build community to advance the most promising poverty-fighting solutions,” per the official site. He will be the first San Francisco mayor in 103 years to be elected without any prior government service.
Throughout his campaign, he focused on the rise of crime and the high cost of housing. He criticized City Hall insiders for not building more housing. He promised to secure 1,500 units of shelter for the homeless within his first six months in office, per KTVU.
Additionally, he concentrated his campaign on a public safety priority platform. He spoke about fully funding and staffing the police and sheriff’s departments. He wants to hire more law enforcement and will aim for 425 officers in his first three years of office, per KTVU. The mayor-elect also said he doesn’t want the police force acting as homeless outreach workers and mental health counselors, but rather, he wants to implement a co-responder model.
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On Nov. 3, ahead of Election Day, he shared an Instagram video alongside his 10-year-old son and 13-year-old daughter as he cast his vote with a mail-in ballot.
“I’m deeply grateful to my incredible family, campaign team and every San Franciscan who voted for accountability, service and change,” Lurie wrote in an Instagram post on Thursday, Nov. 7. “No matter who you supported in this election, we stand united in the fight for San Francisco’s future and a safer and more affordable city for all.”
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