With 200 volunteers working at full capacity, the real advantage lies not in ideology but in the capacity to knock on doors — something money can buy.
When Private Money Decides Who Represents the Community
In American politics, not every election is decided by votes alone — especially when a centimillionaire decides to pour all their personal resources behind a single candidate. This is precisely what is happening in Congressional District 11 in San Francisco, and the Vietnamese-American community in the Bay Area should pay close attention.
Saikat Chakrabarti — who previously mobilized a campaign budget of 10 million USD largely from his own pocket — is now transferring his entire campaign machinery to support Supervisor Connie Chan. What is remarkable is not the standard endorsement after the primary, but the scale: a brand new PAC is about to be established, along with a team of 200 campaign volunteers — a number far exceeding any campaign in San Francisco to date. By comparison, both Chan and Wiener's current campaigns have fewer than a dozen staff members each.
Connie Chan and Vietnamese-American Voters: The Real Connection
Connie Chan is Chinese-American — not Vietnamese-American — but her policy platform has direct significance for the Vietnamese-American community in San Francisco, San Jose, and the broader Bay Area. Chan represents District 1 on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, an area where many Asian communities reside. Her positions on refusing corporate money, opposing foreign wars, and supporting taxes on the wealthy — as Chakrabarti has emphasized — reflect values that many first and second-generation Vietnamese-American voters are considering amid the current economic climate.
Notably, within the Vietnamese-American engineer community in Silicon Valley — many of whom hold H-1B visas or are awaiting green cards — this race could impact high-skilled immigration and labor policy at the federal level. A Congressional Representative from this region has a voice in committees related to technology budgets, visas, and worker protections.
The Mechanism of Influence: PACs and the Power of Private Money
The formation of a private PAC immediately after the primary is unusual but not illegal. During the 2020 presidential election, Michael Bloomberg committed 100 million USD to support Joe Biden after dropping out — and faced criticism for not doing enough. Chakrabarti clearly wants to avoid that lesson: instead of just providing money, he is providing personnel and machinery.
The crucial difference here is that the PAC operates independently from Chan's official campaign, meaning Chakrabarti's spending is not bound by standard campaign finance regulations. This allows him to deploy resources on a scale that no Congressional campaign in San Francisco has ever attempted.
Weaknesses in Wiener's Argument
Wiener's campaign has issued statements rejecting the notion that Chakrabarti's voters will automatically transfer to Chan — arguing that Chan's free-market housing opposition and ties to pro-Israel groups will discourage progressive voters. This argument has some merit, but it overlooks a crucial fact: Chakrabarti barely attacked Chan throughout the primary campaign — he focused on Wiener instead. This suggests his voters do not harbor ill will toward Chan.
Moreover, with 200 volunteers working at full capacity, the real advantage lies not in ideology but in concrete organizing capacity: door-knocking, voter calls, community events. This is something money can buy and something that Wiener's campaign — despite being better organized in terms of official resources — may not be able to match.
What the Vietnamese-American Community Should Watch
The general election will take place in November 2026. Between now and then, three things deserve attention:
- First, the actual scale of PAC Solidarity: Chakrabarti has not yet disclosed the specific amount he will invest. This number determines the true extent of his influence.
- Second, the reaction of Asian-American voters more broadly in areas such as Richmond, Sunset, and Chinatown — places where Vietnamese and Chinese voters are concentrated, and areas where Wiener already won during the primary.
- Third, Chan's specific policy positions on housing — because this is the number one issue for many Vietnamese-American families buying or renting homes in San Francisco and surrounding areas. Her opposition to free-market housing could be a real weakness, not just an attack line from Wiener.
- Read the full original SF Standard report at the source link below.