As allegations of sexual assault swirl, a candidate in the race for San Francisco’s District 8 supervisor has ended his campaign.<\/p>\n
Local business owner Manny Yekutiel made the announcement Thursday afternoon as a new sexual assault allegation surfaced.<\/p>\n
News quickly spread in the Castro District that Yekutiel dropped out of the race.<\/p>\n
“I was surprised because he’s very arrogant, and initially he didn’t back down,” voter Russell Deason said.<\/p>\n
Three people have now come forward, all with similar stories, alleging Yekutiel groped them at public parties. Deason knows one of the accusers, who first brought these allegations to light.<\/p>\n
“He’s a friend,” Deason said. “I believed him. So, when the second allegation came out, I was like, well, I’m not surprised.”<\/p>\n
While Yekutiel dropped out of the race, the owner of Manny’s Cafe hasn’t admitted to any wrongdoing.<\/p>\n
“I am not admitting to having assaulted anyone and some of the things that are being said about me are fundamentally untrue. But I am deeply sorry for any boundaries that I crossed,” Yekutiel said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Ryan Durrett liked some of Yekutiel’s ideas to improve the district and considered voting for him. But he’s glad the allegations surfaced now.<\/p>\n
“I want someone who I can trust with my moral compass,” Durrett said. “Manny was tricky because I don’t think our moral compasses completely aligned in a universal way.”<\/p>\n
No formal charges have been brought forward in any of the cases. Deason feels it’s time to reflect on this behavior he feels is prevalent in the LGBTQ+ community.<\/p>\n
“A lot of men feel entitled to make those sort of advances,” he said. “And they’re not. We live in a different age now, and just because you’re at a party or in a bar or whatever the setting.”<\/p>\n
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