Manohar "Mano" RajuManohar "Mano" Raju

Mano Raju is running unopposed, and we're giving him a weak endorsement. He has led the office since 2019, when he was appointed (https://growsf.org/voter-guide/questionnaires/november-2026/manohar-raju/) after Jeff Adachi died, and it now represents more than 20,000 clients a year (https://growsf.org/voter-guide/questionnaires/november-2026/manohar-raju/) on a $56.7 million budget (https://growsf.org/voter-guide/questionnaires/november-2026/manohar-raju/).

We think he could do better. Since May 2025 the office has refused new cases one day a week (https://growsf.org/news/2026-03-26-raju-held-in-contempt/), saying its attorneys are over capacity, and in March a judge held Raju in contempt (https://growsf.org/news/2026-03-13-judge-holds-sf-public-defender-in-contempt/) and fined him $26,000 (https://growsf.org/news/2026-03-26-raju-held-in-contempt/) over 26 refused felony appointments. Defendants have a constitutional right to a lawyer, and refusing appointments in defiance of a court order is not how San Francisco should run its courts.

Raju says the office needs 35 more attorneys (https://growsf.org/voter-guide/questionnaires/november-2026/manohar-raju/) to keep up with filings. We did a cursory review of the department's finances and did not find savings on that scale, though we think the office could save close to $1 million by dropping its Sacramento lobbying and other political activities. The office needs to work with City Hall to find a way forward.

Source (https://growsf.org/voter-guide/san-francisco-voter-guide-november-2026-election#public-defender)