Mark Farrell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 44th Mayor of San Francisco | |
| In office January 23, 2018 – July 11, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | London Breed (Acting) |
| Succeeded by | London Breed |
| Member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors from the 2nd district | |
| In office January 8, 2011 – January 23, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Michela Alioto-Pier |
| Succeeded by | Catherine Stefani |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1974 (age 49–50) San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Liz |
| Education | Loyola Marymount University (BA) University College Dublin (MA) University of Pennsylvania (JD) |
| Website | Government website |
Mark E. Farrell (born 1974) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 44th Mayor of San Francisco from January 23 to July 11, 2018. Before his appointment as mayor, he served on the Board of Supervisors for nearly two terms, representing District 2 (the Marina, Cow Hollow, Pacific Heights, Seacliff, Lake District, Presidio Heights, Jordan Park, Laurel Heights, Presidio, and part of Russian Hill).
Farrell was born in 1974, the only child of Lena (née Ewoldt), a former flight attendant[1] from Probstei, Germany near Kiel and John Farrell, a former Air Force pilot, and attorney, who grew up near the Palace of Fine Arts on Broderick Street.[2] Farrell spent his summers at his cousin's family farm in Probstei.[3][4]
Farrell attended both Stuart Hall for Boys and Saint Ignatius College Preparatory, and subsequently received a B.A. in 1996 from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, an M.A. from University College Dublin in Ireland, and a J.D. in 2001 from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in Philadelphia.[5][non-primary source needed]
Prior to being elected to San Francisco's Board of Supervisors, Farrell practiced law as a corporate and securities attorney at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in Silicon Valley, then joined Thomas Weisel Partners as an investment banker. He subsequently co-founded Quest Hospitality Ventures, a San Francisco-based venture capital firm focused on the hospitality and travel sector.[5] Prior to his election to the Board of Supervisors, he served as a mid-level director of Quest Hospitality Ventures,[6][7][8] now Thayer Ventures[9][10][11][12][13] a venture capital firm.[2][5]
Farrell was first elected in November 2010 by the voters of District 2, and subsequently reelected in November 2014 for his second term. Farrell served as Chair of the Budget and Finance Committee, a founding member of the 2016–17 Super Bowl Bid Committee, and on eight other local and state boards and committees.[14][15][16][17]
After his election to the Board of Supervisors, Farrell ushered through a two-year city budget that reformed the way San Francisco paid for retiree health care benefits and passed small business tax credit legislation so the city's small businesses could hire more employees and create more local jobs. In addition, Farrell created a public-private partnership between the San Francisco non-profit Kiva.org and San Francisco's Office of Small Business. He also became the first elected official in California to endorse Kiva borrowers on the platform personally.[18]
Farrell introduced an ordinance in 2015 that required gun store owners to video record all transactions and give weekly updates on ammunition sales to the police department. High Bridge Arms, the only firearm retailer in the city, closed after the ordinance was passed. Farrell told the San Francisco Chronicle, "From my perspective, if the last gun store in San Francisco wants to close its doors because of my legislation, so be it."[19]
In June 2016, Farrell was ordered to repay $191,000[20] in unlawful campaign funding after the City ethics panel voted, 5-0, to uphold the original 2014 decision of the San Francisco Ethics Commission that he should have to forfeit back to the City the amount raised from just two donors and used late in the 2010 election by Common Sense Voters,[21][22][23][24] an independent expenditure committee, with improper communications from a campaign consultant. Farrell was exonerated by the California Fair Political Practices Commission, although the campaign consultant Chris Lee and Common Sense Voters were found to be in violation of federal campaign finance laws, but a further complaint was filed with the City commission by Janet Reilly, who lost to Farrell by 256 votes. City law, stricter than state law, holds candidates personally responsible for staff as well as themselves, whether they knew about the illegal communication or not. In an unusual move, Farrell responded with a lawsuit against the City in May to prevent further collection efforts from the Treasurer's office, and settled with the City for $25,000 in Oct. 2016.[22][25][26][27][28][20]
Farrell was appointed as mayor by the Board of Supervisors on January 23, 2018, succeeding acting mayor London Breed. In her capacity as President of the Board of Supervisors, Breed had been serving as acting mayor since the death of Mayor Ed Lee on December 12, 2017. Farrell's appointment expired on July 11, 2018, following a citywide special election held on June 5, 2018. Farrell did not seek election. Breed won that election[29] and served out the remainder of Lee's uncompleted term into January 8, 2020.[30] She was elected on November 5, 2019 to a full term as mayor beginning January 8, 2020.
In February 2024, Farrell started a campaign for mayor. He called for re-introducing cars to Market Street, a pedestrian corridor in downtown San Francisco.[31]
Farrell's wife, Liz, was raised in Danville. She was formerly a morning TV news producer. The couple has two children.[2]
