Kelly Waldron

GitHub – LinkedIn – Bluesky

I'm a data reporter at Mission Local, a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to covering San Francisco. I combine enterprise reporting with data analysis and custom graphics to produce insightful stories on a variety of topics, including politics, campaign finance and law enforcement.

I hold a Bachelor's degree in Geography and GIS from McGill University and a Master's degree in Data Journalism from Columbia Journalism School. Before turning to journalism, I worked at a remote sensing company in Montreal, analyzing measurements of methane using satellite imagery. Occasionally, I take and develop photos.

Contact: kae.waldron@gmail.com

Mission Local

Hidden from sight: 1/2 of local ICE arrests took place behind closed doors, new analysis shows

I reviewed and visualized an analysis showing patterns in local immigration enforcement.

HTML JavaScript CSS Illustrator

Mission Local

What does the mayor directly control in San Francisco's budget?

I created this explainer that shows how the city's budget whittles down to a small pot of discretionary funds.

JavaScript Illustrator

Mission Local

Explore: $8 million going to San Francisco ballot measures

I analyzed campaign finance data and created interactive visualizations to show how much corporations and major donors pledged to ballot measures.

Python d3.js

Mission Local

Unpacking San Francisco's $16 billion budget

I created an interactive treemap and tables to break down San Francisco's budget.

Python d3.js

Mission Local

San Francisco's June 2026 election

I built scripts to pull election results and update maps and charts as part of our live election coverage.

Python Mapbox Datatables JavaScript
Election results map

Mission Local

Redistricting likely cost Dean Preston, benefitted Myrna Melgar

I looked at election results across old and new district boundaries to see how redistricting affected the 2024 election outcomes.

QGIS Python Illustrator

Mission Local

Tracking the mayor's major moves

I created a dataset of the new mayor's major moves and policy changes and published it as an interactive database.

d3.js

Mission Local

Here's where SFPD officers are working private security gigs

I mapped where SFPD officers are working private security gigs across San Francisco.

Python Datawrapper

Mission Local

How did your neighbors vote in the November 2024 election?

I created an interactive map where readers can select a precinct, neighborhood or district and see how their neighbors voted compared to the rest of the city.

Mapbox JavaScript