Dems confront criticism on crime after San Francisco defeat

By STEVE PEOPLES and JANIE HAR
Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Democrats are defending their record on crime a day after an election for district attorney in California exposed lingering vulnerabilities. Voters in San Francisco voted to oust progressive District Attorney Chesa Boudin, who had embraced calls to seek alternatives to incarceration and hold police officers to account. President Joe Biden said that voters had sent a “clear message” to both parties about public safety. Democrats continue to face pointed attacks from Republicans about their commitment to public safety two years after progressive activists championed nationwide calls to “defund the police.” Biden and most Democrats in Congress have rejected such calls, but polling suggests that voters trust Republicans more than Democrats on crime.