Reuters North American News Service, November 7th, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - San Francisco Mayor Gavin
Newsom, a rising star among Democrats who made headlines during
his first term by briefly allowing gay marriage, appears to
have easily won re-election in Tuesday's vote.
Under a change in the way ballots are counted, city
election officials said it could take days to know the final
numbers, although they said 78 percent of the absentee ballots
favored Newsom and he had no serious opposition.
Speaking to supporters at a party on Tuesday to thank
voters and discuss his second term, Newsom said of San
Francisco: "The world looks to us to do things like health
care, to be the pace car on the environment."
In the famously gay-friendly Californian city, Newsom, 40,
shot up in popularity soon after first taking office in 2004
when he defied a statewide law that defined marriage as a union
between and a man and a woman.
After several weeks, a court ordered the city to stop
allowing homosexuals to marry, and the issue remains in
litigation.
The handsome mayor with slicked back hair cut a dashing
figure but suffered a series of personal setbacks during his
first term. He and his glamorous wife divorced not long after
they posed together in Harper's Bazaar, which called the pair
"the New Kennedys".
Early this year Newsom admitted having an affair with his
appointments secretary who was the wife of his campaign
manager. He also said he would seek counseling for alcohol
abuse.
Liberal San Francisco took the turmoil in stride and Newsom
remained so popular that no major opponent ran against him. The
reelection campaign generated little local interest even with
longshots such as a sex club owner and a nudist seeking the
position.
(Reporting by Adam Tanner; Editing by David Storey)
