Scott Wiener driven from San Francisco Trans March amid Gaza protests

Scott Wiener was pushed out of San Francisco’s Trans March in Dolores Park after protesters shouted at him over Israel and Palestine, leaving the state senator to say he was "verbally and physically" harassed and felt unsafe enough to leave. Wiener said he did not take part in the march for the first time.

The confrontation on June 26, 2026, landed in the middle of a congressional race already shaped by Gaza. Wiener, one of San Francisco’s best-known LGBTQ+ elected officials, is running to replace Nancy Pelosi and finished first in the June 3 primary with 41% of the vote. Connie Chan took about 29%, while Saikat Chakrabarti finished third with nearly 15% before dropping out. Wiener’s position on Israel and Gaza had already become a defining issue in the contest, especially after he said in January 2026 that he believed Israel’s actions in Gaza amounted to genocide.

In November 2025, Wiener said he would not support U.S. sales of offensive arms to Israel unless Israel was committed to peace and democracy, and he said he would not accept support from AIPAC. He had previously drawn protests at a Halloween pumpkin-carving event in October 2024, when demonstrators chanted, "We charge you with genocide."

Driving politicians off the Trans March has been a feature of the event for at least a decade, and in 2016 then-Mayor Ed Lee was booed off the stage along with then-Assembly Member David Chiu and then-State Senator Mark Leno. A video of Wiener being forced out spread quickly online and was shared by national reporters and political operatives.

The clash came during a charged Pride weekend that also saw five people arrested at the tail end of the Trans March for alleged vandalism. It also unfolded against a broader backdrop in San Francisco, where more than 10,000 people marched in 2023 in support of Palestinians and for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza, while other rallies have centered transgender rights and opposition to anti-trans rhetoric. In California’s 11th Congressional District, where Chinese-American voters make up more than 16% of the electorate and Taiwan has emerged as another campaign flashpoint.