[3] Mayor London Breed, who had backed a more moderate Democrat in the 2019 district attorney race, appointed Brooke Jenkins as Boudin's replacement on July 8, 2022.

[4][5] The successful recall reflected voter frustration with quality of life street conditions such as homelessness, substance abuse, property crime, violence against Asian Americans, and mental illness.

[6][7] Journalists and opinion writers speculated that voters nationwide had become less supportive of criminal justice reform and wanted more focus on public safety, with implications for the November midterm elections.

[9][10] Boudin campaigned for the office on a decarceration platform of eliminating cash bail, establishing a unit to re-evaluate wrongful convictions and refusing to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with raids and arrests.

The first campaign was spearheaded by former mayoral candidate Richie Greenberg, a member of the Republican Party, but narrowly fell short of the 51,325 signatures needed before the August 11 deadline.

[28] The second campaign was led by Mary Jung and Andrea Shorter, both members of the Democratic Party, and had a deadline of October 25 to collect the same number of signatures.

[39] The two committee members supporting the recall were Suzy Loftus and Nancy Tung; both were candidates in the 2019 district attorney election won by Boudin.

[105] San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman noted, "The voters have risen up and expressed tremendous frustration with the state of the city and a feeling that leaders are not taking us in the direction the people want to go.

McAlister had been arrested multiple times in the months leading up to the deaths, but Boudin declined to file charges, relying on the state parole system.

[105] Although voters became more concerned for their personal safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, Boudin continued to focus on his campaign promises including expansion of diversion programs, reducing the jail population, and prosecute police officers.

[105][107] While other local politicians like San Francisco Mayor London Breed changed their focus to public safety, Boudin did not adjust his messaging.

The successful recall reflected voter frustration with quality of life street conditions such as homelessness, substance abuse, property crime, violence against Asian Americans, and mental illness.

[6][7] Democratic strategists suggested that the electorate in the November midterms would be shifting rightwards on police, crime, and public safety; and candidates and politicians should change their messaging accordingly.

[8] In the June primary election, progressive candidates for law enforcement positions in the extended Bay Area had a mixed performance, neither a sweep nor a blowout.

Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton, who prosecuted a sheriff's deputy for killing a person while on duty, handily won re-election against law enforcement opposition.