Following the successful recall, many speculated over who the mayor might pick to steer the Sunset forward. Lurie could use another vote on the Board of Supervisors to help pass his Family Zoning Plan, which would increase height and density regulations to make way for thousands of new homes on the westside. Some recall supporters and Sunset residents have challenged the plan, saying it poses threats to the community, and were eager to see someone appointed who would oppose it.
A source familiar with Alcaraz said she supports bringing more housing to the Sunset, but could introduce amendments to the current plan that’s under deliberation.
While Alcaraz comes to the position with relatively little experience in governance or campaigning, she also brings little political baggage. Some recall supporters, such as local business owner Albert Chow, had also put their names out for Lurie’s consideration, but could have been controversial due to their direct ties to the campaign.
She’s received early support from some of the neighborhood’s Chinese Americans, who played a pivotal role in the recall election, and business leaders like Ed Siu, chairman of the Chinatown Merchants United Association of San Francisco.
Edward Siu, president of the Chinatown Merchants United Association, stands on a busy corner of Stockton Street in San Francisco’s Chinatown neighborhood on Sept. 13, 2023. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)
“As a former small business owner, Beya knows firsthand the challenges local merchants face and the vital role they play in keeping our neighborhoods strong and vibrant,” Siu said in a statement. “Beya also has deep respect and understanding for the needs and values of our Chinese community here in the Sunset.”
Alcaraz has not shared how she voted in the recall election. But at a night market shortly after, she directly approached the mayor and said she wanted to be his pick.
“This neighborhood deserves to be represented by one of its own. Someone grounded in people, not politics. Someone who can bring a fresh perspective to City Hall and who’s ready to put in the work,” Lurie said.
Alcaraz will serve as supervisor until the next local election in June 2026, when voters will decide if she or someone else will permanently hold the District 4 seat.
The new supervisor will have to guide the divided community through an ongoing battle over the Great Highway, which led to Engardio’s fallout.
Visitors are seen during the grand opening of the Sunset Dunes Park along the former Upper Great Highway, in San Francisco, on April 12, 2025. (Stephen Lam/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
In 2024, voters across the city approved a ballot measure that closed off the Upper Great Highway to make way for a beachside park now known as Sunset Dunes. But the majority of voters in the Sunset, who live closest to the park, voted against it.
Many who supported the recall said that the change has affected their commute times — even though a San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency study shows traffic has not significantly changed since the road closure — and that they felt their voices were not represented by their supervisor.
A source familiar with Alcaraz said she believed the city’s former compromise to allow cars on the Great Highway on weekdays, but close it off for recreation on the weekends, worked well and would be open to revisiting the issue to bring cars back to the thoroughfare.
Many residents are already nervously anticipating the new supervisor’s plans for the Great Highway, but welcoming her with cautious optimism.
“We’re encouraged that she wants to engage directly with her constituents rather than prescribing top-down solutions from City Hall,” Lucas Lux, president of Friends of Sunset Dunes, said in a statement. “We want to be crystal clear: Allowing cars on the park in any way is not a ‘compromise.’ It’s a park closure … Our community deserves better: a permanent coastal park that San Francisco can be proud of, not a return to a halfway measure that left our neighborhood embroiled in argument for five years.”
Children play on a tree branch at the Sunset Dunes Park grand opening on the Upper Great Highway in San Francisco on April 12, 2025. (Gina Castro/KQED)
Matt Lopez, a lifetime Sunset resident who runs two bars in the neighborhood, said he was initially against the park and closing off the Great Highway. But since it’s open, he said he frequently visits with his baby and enjoys the open space. Still, he’s sympathetic to the drivers who have had their commutes to work affected by the change.
He likes the idea of having a local resident and small business owner step into City Hall to represent the neighborhood.
“Everything she said in her speech really resonated with me,” said Lopez, who attended the press conference on Thursday. “The Sunset was a forgotten neighborhood for a really long time.”
One of Alcaraz’s top priorities, and toughest tests, will be uniting the Sunset after the tense election season.
“The Sunset has shown that we are ready to rally from the ground up. In the spirit of healing and moving forward, I will work to bring all the residents of this district together to secure the future of the Sunset,” she said. “This is our chance to have a seat at the table.”
