The View asked three top contenders running for District 10 Supervisor to respond to a series of questions. Their answers are being published in the April, May, and July issues.

Q: What’s the proudest moment of your life?

Theo Ellington: Being a father to three boys, Lennox, Hendrix, and Maxwell has been the proudest moment of my life. I would also say becoming the first in my family to graduate from college. My grandfather worked as a laborer on roads and bridges in San Francisco. My mom raised my brother and I working as a concessioner at Candlestick Park for $18,000 a year. All that I am today I owe to the sacrifices they made. I can now pass along the values of hard work and determination to my own children.

Q: Who is your best friend?

Theo Ellington: My best friend is my brother, Edwin Gipson. He’s always been my biggest confidant and the person who has shared every part of growing up in Bayview with me—from the loss of our cousin who was shot and killed in the neighborhood, to telling stories through the documentary film work I did in high school about the 24 bus line and the homelessness crisis we saw every day. Those experiences shaped how we see San Francisco and why this work matters to me. My brother has always kept me grounded and reminded me that this work–whether organizing neighbors to fight for environmental justice at the Hunters Point Shipyard or standing against the discriminatory policing practice of stop and frisk–is ultimately about people, dignity, and community.

Q: What do you like most about District 10?

Theo Ellington: Our greatest strength is the diversity of our residents. In no other district in San Francisco do you have a historic Black neighborhood, a burgeoning immigrant community, the new AI/Tech capital of the world, makers and creatives, first generation Americans, and working-class families all living side by side. District 10 is a welcoming neighborhood that has a real opportunity to grow without displacing longtime residents. We’ll soon have the best waterfront in the world, with development sites at Pier 70, the Power Station, the Shipyard, Candlestick, India Basin, and Schlage Lock. We need leadership that will actually fight to get these projects over the finish line and to make sure the people who live in, work in, and love this district share in its future.

District 10 Supervisor Q & A continues in the June issue.  

Read the full story here.