Meet Michael

Two Decades of Organizing for Justice

For over 20 years, Michael has been organizing alongside LGBTQ+ communities, building spaces for voices often left out of the conversation. He founded QTAPI Week (Queer and Trans Asian Pacific Islander Week), creating space for communities often invisible in both LGBTQ+ and AAPI organizing.

Michael has consistently shown up for communities under attack—standing with Asian American elders facing violence, organizing with tenants to fight displacement, and rallying to protect drag performers and nightlife venues when they're threatened. He's spent two decades building coalitions, mentoring younger organizers, and creating the infrastructure that allows communities to fight for themselves.

Michael, the Organizer
A woman with shoulder-length dark hair holding a baby on her lap, sitting on a striped armchair indoors.
Young boy in a light blue graduation gown and cap with a tassel, posing against a blue background, smiling.

Against the Odds: The Unlikely Journey to Becoming a Lawyer

Michael's path to becoming an attorney wasn't easy or expected. But Michael had grown up watching his immigrant parents work multiple jobs, never giving up. And he'd been inspired by Legally Blonde—the story of someone underestimated who proved everyone wrong.

When he first moved to San Francisco for law school, living in a tiny Noe Valley studio, he noticed Sutro Tower every single day. That towering landmark became his constant, his beacon in a new city.

Michael, the Lawyer
A woman dressed in a red and gold costume with a sash reading 'Miss GAPA 2019' holds a megaphone and gestures towards the crowd during a parade. Behind her, a group of diverse people are walking, some holding signs, on a city street lined with trees and tall buildings.
A man is singing into a microphone on a city street with a large building in the background. Two people are on a mobile stage behind him, one working on a laptop and another adjusting equipment. All are wearing masks.

From Refugee Family to Finding Home

"After years of searching, I found a home in San Francisco. Now I'm fighting so everyone else can too."

Michael Nguyen's parents fled authoritarianism in Vietnam and met in a refugee camp at Eglin Air Force Base in Pensacola, Florida. Michael was born in Chicago, and his family moved constantly throughout his childhood—moving five times before he turned fifteen. Graduating from high school in Plano, Texas, Michael felt that home was always temporary, stability always just out of reach.

Michael, Son of Refugees
A group of four people at a graduation ceremony outside a church, with a graduate in academic regalia standing next to three friends or family members.

Michael has the experience we need in District 8.

Group of four people in formal attire standing inside a room with green curtains, holding a framed document, smiling at the camera.

My parents came to America as refugees with nothing but hope. I came to San Francisco at 24 with that same spirit. For nearly 20 years, that hope has fueled my work building coalitions and fighting for our communities. I'm running for District 8 Supervisor because I believe in the audacity to hope we can build a San Francisco where nurses, teachers, and working families can afford to stay—where every dollar serves people, not just the powerful.

  • For nearly 20 years, I've united diverse communities—building the QTAPI Coalition of 20+ organizations, founding the AAPI Caucus of the Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club, and bridging gaps between communities that too often operate in silos. As Supervisor, I'll bring that same coalition-building approach to City Hall, working across divides to deliver results for District 8.

  • When Atlanta's spa shootings happened in March 2021, I mobilized 1,000+ people in 72 hours for the LGBTQ+ March for Asian Lives. When GAPA was in danger of shutting down in 2017, I became Chair and revitalized it. When crisis hits, I don't wait for permission—I organize. District 8 needs a Supervisor who shows up and delivers under pressure.

  • I saved GAPA when it was on the verge of closing, transforming a struggling 35-year-old organization with fresh vision and structure. I created QTAPI Week, growing it from local grassroots effort to nationwide celebration in just four years. I helped establish the world's first Drag Laureate program. I know how to turn vision into lasting institutions—exactly what good governance requires.

  • The city just reformed its contracting system because nearly half of contract solicitations get zero or one bid —a clear sign of dysfunction. I know exactly why: I've lived it. Fighting for QTAPI Week funding. Watching Livable City wait a year for contracted payments. Seeing small nonprofits drown in red tape while $5 billion flows annually. Reform passed—now we need a Supervisor who'll fight to make it work for community organizations, not just on paper.

  • As Miss GAPA and later GAPA Chair, I served as ambassador and problem-solver for our community—showing up, listening, and connecting people to resources. I've served on 10+ boards, answered countless calls for help, and mobilized support when individuals and families needed it most. Great constituent service isn't flashy, but it changes lives—and it's what I've been doing for two decades.

  • In March 2024, I won election to the San Francisco Democratic Party through grassroots organizing and community support. I've been honored by the California State Legislature as a Pride Month Honoree and by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors as an AAPI Heritage Month Honoree. I've earned recognition not through connections, but through delivering results.

Take Action