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Gavin Newsom

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor Tuesday, aligning himself with gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown and setting off a political free-for-all at City Hall over his succession if he wins in November.

Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn conceded shortly after 11:00 p.m., as Newsom, 42, celebrated with a crowd of supporters at Yoshi’s Jazz Club in the Fillmore.

Newsom, whose name was once whispered in some circles as a presidential possibility, abruptly dropped out of the governor’s race late last year after failing to gain any traction against Brown. The number two spot was seen as a consolation prize or a placeholder for Newsom’s political ambitions, but on Tuesday night, as he spoke to his supporters in his gravelly voice, he seemed energized.

“I’m very proud to be the nominee,” he said emphatically. “I’m very enthusiastic.”

Newsom will face the Republican incumbent, Abel Maldonado, who also prevailed Tuesday.

Newsom immediately expressed commitment to the Brown campaign and dug into Republican gubernatorial nominee Meg Whitman’s campaign spending.

Newsom’s father, William Newsom, was appointed to the California Court of Appeals by former California Gov. Edmund “Pat” Brown Sr., Jerry Brown’s late father.

“Through generations of the Brown and Newsom families we have had a working relationship,” the mayor said. “I have great expectations of Jerry Brown.”

The possibility of Newsom’s departure in November has sparked rampant speculation within San Francisco’s political establishment over who might succeed him. If he is elected in November, a majority of six members of the board of supervisors is required to appoint an interim mayor.

Several supervisors, including David Chiu, John Avalos and David Campos, are said to harbor mayoral ambitions. Because rules do not allow supervisors to vote for themselves, it is unclear if any one could marshal six votes.

The speculation is largely focused on Chiu, the president of the board, who could become the city’s first Chinese-American mayor.

When reached on Tuesday, Chiu insisted that he was not preoccupied with the issue.

“I’m just doing the work I need to be doing for San Francisco,” he said. “I’m hoping we’ll address the challenges now and we’ll see what happens after November.”

Aaron Peskin, the influential head of the Democratic Central Committee and another name persistently bandied about as a mayoral contender, was similarly coy Tuesday.

“It’s a long time between now and November,” Peskin said. “Let’s see what the voters decide, and then see what the board of supervisors decides.”