Gary McCoy, a confidant of Rep. Nancy Pelosi who is also a health care advocate and LGBTQ leader, will run to represent San Francisco’s Castro District in what is shaping up to be a heated contest for an open Board of Supervisors seat.

McCoy is hoping to succeed Rafael Mandelman as the supervisor representing District 8, which includes the Castro, Noe Valley and Glen Park. Mandelman’s second term ends in January 2027, and city law forbids him from running again next year.

McCoy, who has lived in the district for nearly 20 years, serves as the campaign manager for Pelosi’s Save Our Health Care Campaign and previously worked for a prominent San Francisco drug treatment nonprofit.

He is set face stiff competition from Manny Yekutiel, the owner of an eponymous café and political gathering space in the Mission who recently entered the District 8 supervisor race with Mandelman’s endorsement. Yekutiel said last week that he’d already raised $120,000, a sign of how expensive the Castro supervisor contest is likely to become.

McCoy has received an early endorsement from Pelosi, who described him in a statement as “a trusted, tested advocate who will bring thoughtful leadership and deep experience to the Board of Supervisors.”

“Gary is well prepared to help San Francisco address key challenges — jobs, affordability, housing and health care,” Pelosi said. “The people in District 8 will be well served by Gary’s steady hand and fierce advocacy at City Hall.” 

McCoy is in recovery from drug addiction and was also previously homeless and spent time in jail when he was younger. Telling his story to the Chronicle in 2021, he said he was charged with grand larceny for trying to steal a computer from a Walmart in Virginia and went to jail after failing to show up for mandatory probation check-ins and drug screens. He later made his way to San Francisco, where he struggled with addiction and became HIV-positive. He eventually entered drug treatment and has been sober since 2011. 

“I know what it means to fight,” McCoy said in a statement. “I’ve fought for health care, for housing, for working families, and for our LGBTQ community. I’ve lived the consequences of a system that fails people, and I’ve worked to change that system so others don’t have to endure the same struggles. That’s the fight I want to take to City Hall for District 8.”

McCoy previously worked at worked at HealthRight 360, San Francisco’s largest addiction treatment provider. HealthRight 360 came under scrutiny in a Chronicle investigation last year that found staff and client overdose deaths on-site and a revolving door of clients cycling between the streets and the programs.

He enters the race with support from a mix of progressives and moderates, including Supervisors Matt Dorsey and Connie Chan, and California Democratic Party Vice Chair David Campos.