House candidate Saikat Chakrabarti is contending with being an outsider to the local political establishment by embracing creator-driven media and hosting other outside progressives at his rallies, including incendiary leftwing commentator Hasan Piker.

Former Stripe engineer and congressional candidate Saikat Chakrabarti, who has spent millions of his own money on his campaign, is leaning into his outsider status both locally and within the Democratic Party as he tries to build name recognition in San Francisco politics, as Mission Local reports.

Chakrabarti has spent heavily on field operations, hiring paid canvassers to build name recognition through door-to-door outreach, while also leaning into what his campaign calls “new media” by doing interviews with online creators as well as traditional reporters.

A central theme of his campaign has been sustained criticism of the Democratic Party’s direction and what he describes as its failure to effectively confront Trump. As previously reported, those tensions reportedly prompted House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi to pressure Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to fire Chakrabarti as her chief of staff, creating an awkward situation where AOC declined to endorse him in the race.

On Thursday, Former New York congressman Jamaal Bowman appeared at the event, alongside progressive House candidates from New York City, Los Angeles, and Denver, all of whom are endorsed by Justice Democrats, a group Chakrabarti co-founded to help promote insurgent progressives in Democratic primaries, according to the Chronicle.

The biggest draw of the night though was Muslim content creator, Hasan Piker, whose commentary on Israel, US foreign policy, and other issues has drawn backlash from Jewish organizations and moderate Democrats. Chakrabarti and Piker have recently collaborated on campaign videos and policy discussions online, with Thursday marking their first public event together.

Piker, who has a large online following and streams for hours daily, compared Chakrabarti to New York Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani and invoked a Maoist slogan about inspiring “a thousand Zohrans” to emerge, per Mission Local. Chakrabarti told the crowd, “We ruffled some feathers with the Democratic establishment. And I’m glad we did.”

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In anticipation of Piker’s appearance, Supervisor Matt Dorsey reportedly introduced a resolution this week calling on the San Francisco Democratic Party to formally condemn Piker and reject what it describes as efforts to reshape the party around his political views.

Dorsey, who has described himself as a “self-proclaimed Zionist,” per Mission Local, has focused his criticism on Piker’s public comments about Israel, as well as other past remarks that have circulated widely online, including statements about 9/11 and a video in which Piker lashed out at a Vietnamese refugee supporting Donald Trump.

Piker has pushed back on those characterizations, saying his comments have been taken out of context and pointing to the pace and volume of his hours-long live streams.

Additionally, a counter-protest over Piker’s appearance was also planned Thursday, but Piker pointed out that not a single person showed up, as Mission Local reports. “They have the money and interest, but we have the people,” he said.

Per the Chronicle, Tiffaney Bradley, spokesperson for Chakrabarti’s campaign, responded to Dorsey’s resolution in a statement, arguing that the Democratic party is failing its constituents, citing dismal polling numbers and pointing to rising costs, global conflict, and what she described as an erosion of civil rights under an “authoritarian government.”

“The only option we have left is to use the democratic process to change our party, so if you see a rally of Democrats trying to inspire people to get involved as a threat — then you’re part of the problem,” Bradley said.

Related: Former Pelosi Staffer Says Chakrabarti Was Fired From AOC's Staff

Image: Hasan Piker attends the 2026 Vanity Fair Oscar Party hosted by Mark  Guiducci at Los Angeles County Museum of Art on March 15, 2026 in Los  Angeles, California. (Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)