Candidates for San Francisco's Congressional District 11 seat, from left, Saikat Chakrabarti, Connie Chan, and Scott Wiener debate at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco, on Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Candidates for San Francisco’s Congressional District 11 seat, from left, Saikat Chakrabarti, Connie Chan, and Scott Wiener debate at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco, on Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Candidates for San Francisco’s Congressional District 11 seat, from left, Saikat Chakrabarti, Connie Chan, and Scott Wiener debate at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco, on Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (Carlos Avila Gonzalez/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

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Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was the embodiment of the Democratic establishment for some. So it was perhaps natural that a wealthy former software engineer, Saikat Chakrabarti, announced plans to challenge her in her San Francisco district.

Chakrabarti is the founder of Justice Democrats, a group that launches primaries of fellow Democrats from the left, and he’s used the millions he made in Silicon Valley to fund his campaign. But Pelosi, who has been in office for nearly 40 years, is retiring from her 11th District seat, and it’s not clear Chakrabarti will make it to the November ballot.

He faces state Sen. Scott Wiener, a well-known lawmaker who has served in San Francisco and the state capitol in Sacramento, and San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan, who has been endorsed by Pelosi.