In spite of an accusation earlier this summer of aggressive groping, and following an independent investigation into the incident, the SF Democratic Party voted Wednesday to endorse cafe owner Manny Yekutiel for District 8 supervisor.

There was a contentious meeting of the San Francisco Democratic Party Wednesday in Visitacion Valley, as Mission Local reports, in which local Democrats heard public comment in support of and in opposition to the endorsement of Manny Yekutiel to be supervisor of District 8. The district includes the Castro, Noe Valley, Glen Park, part of the Mission District, part of the Haight-Ashbury, Cole Valley, and Corona/Ashbury Heights, and current Supervisor Rafael Mandelman is termed out.

Yekutiel faced an accusation in June from Brad Chapin, who is active in progressive politics and was a former board member of the Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club, that he assaulted and/or aggressively groped him at a private party in early 2020. Yekutiel said he vaguely remembered attending the party but said he did not do what Chapin accused him of — which included a description of squeezing his testicles under his pants.

San Francisco police declined to pursue charges against Yekutiel, and the independent investigation conducted by the SF Democratic Party — which Chapin called "a sham" during the public comment session, per Mission Local — was inconclusive, largely because the alleged event did not take place during a Democratic Party event, and therefore falls outside the body's jurisdiction, they said.

As the Chronicle and Mission Local report, the public comment session at the packed meeting went on for over two hours, with many people speaking in support of and against Yekutiel. But Chapin, sitting in the front row, reportedly continued to heckle DCCC Chair Nancy Tung and others who stood up to make comments, which led to Tung calling a brief recess. Others in the audience also reportedly spoke out of turn, and things became heated multiple times.

Yekutiel's seeming biggest rival in the race, progressive candidate Gary McCoy, had the first-round vote of Supervisor Matt Dorsey, as Mission Local notes, who spoke about his and McCoy's shared experiences in the recovery community and with addiction.

But, per Mission Local, in the final round of voting Wednesday night, the only two choices were "no endorsement" or Yekutiel, with McCoy having been knocked out in an earlier round, and Dorsey cast the deciding vote to endorse Yekutiel.

12 DCCC members voted to endorse Yekutiel, while 10 voted for no endorsement, and 10 others were either absent or abstained from the vote.

In a statement after the vote, Yekutiel said, "I’m proud of the momentum behind this campaign, and I’m going to keep taking that message directly to voters across District 8."

Previously: Groping Allegation Threatens to Damage Supervisor Candidacy of Manny Yekutiel