--- description: The Uber driver who picked up Jeb Bush Thursday on a San Francisco street corner doesn't normally vote and didn't recognize the Republican frontrunner. But... title: Jeb Bush Hails San Francisco Uber, Doesn't Win Driver's Vote image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt49b10cd012ffb51f/69885b44428a9e048ccce336/jeb-bush-uber.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [jeb bush](/tag/jeb-bush/) ## jeb bush Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Jeb Bush Hails Uber In San Francisco, Doesn't Win Driver's Vote ## Video: See Jeb Bush's Political Career Through the Years [Watch (HLS stream): See Jeb Bush's Political Career Through the Years](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/3nRIB78f.m3u8) (2:37)  _Published 2015-06-12. From his unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign in 1994 through his decision to seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, here are some of the top moments from Jeb Bush's political career._ by [Zeke J Miller / San Francisco](/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke J Miller / San Francisco Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 16, 2015 7:07 PM CUT  Republican presidential candidate, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, puts on his seat belt getting into an Uber car after speaking at Thumbtack, an online startup in San Francisco. Republican presidential candidate, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, puts on his seat belt getting into an Uber car after speaking at Thumbtack, an online startup in San Francisco.Eric Risberg—AP by [Zeke J Miller / San Francisco](/author/zeke-j-miller/) ## Zeke J Miller / San Francisco Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 16, 2015 7:07 PM CUT The Uber driver who picked up Jeb Bush Thursday on a San Francisco street corner doesn’t normally vote and didn’t recognize the Republican frontrunner. But the experience of driving a man who could be President, and talking about it with a reporter, may get him to the polls this year. He said he will probably pull the lever for Hillary Clinton. Bush is traveling around San Francisco Thursday using the ride-sharing app, the latest embrace by the Republican of the company, which has fought taxi regulations and has come under fire from some Democrats for the scant benefits it offers its network of independent drivers. The GOP has emerged as the company’s staunchest defender, as the party tries to align itself with the hip, and liberal, Bay Area culture as they appeal for younger voters and top donors. Munir Algazaly, 35, an immigrant from Yemen who has been driving Ubers for a year and a half, said “I had no idea,” that the 6’4″ passenger riding shotgun was the Republican presidential candidate. Algazaly drove Bush to Thumbtack, a company that matches independent and small-business professionals with consumers—a startup founded by former aides to President George W. Bush that appeals to the GOP’s free-market sensibilities. Bush tweeted that he gave his driver a five-star rating, the highest possible, after the ride. For nearly an hour before Bush arrived, every car that had the misfortune of slowing near the reporters in the rush-hour traffic was nearly surrounded by television cameras and reporters hoping to view him stepping out of the car. The false alarms continued, even after a campaign aide confirmed that Bush was arriving in a Toyota Camry, with the gaggle of cameras crowding around random vehicles, including this reporter’s taxi when he arrived late bearing a coffee. About a dozen employees of Thumbtack were waiting by the loft windows of their headquarters to take photos of Bush when he arrived. In the liberal stronghold, the response from passersby when they realized Bush was infiltrating their Democratic redoubt was mixed. One woman laughed heartily before flashing a “rock-on” hand sign, after briefly being accosted by the cameras in another case of mistaken identity. Another passerby, when informed that the press was waiting for Bush, stuck out her tongue and sneered before driving away. A few more drivers honked and yelled. Responding to a question from a reporter, Bush reported that his father, former president George H.W. Bush, is “stable” and “doing okay, I think” after a fall Wednesday in which he broke a bone in his neck. Algazaly said he didn’t recall what Bush’s specific Uber rating was, adding that they talked about the city and traffic as they drove. While Bush took questions for 10 minutes from reporters after his town hall at Thumbtack, an aide called another Uber for Bush, asking the driver, who was quickly surrounded by cameras and reporters, “Can you handle this?” The driver, who said he was a Democrat, was game, and as reporters shouted questions at him and photographers blocked traffic to take his photo, he slowly pulled away from the curb, saying, “We’ve got to go.” ### See Jeb Bush's Life in Photos  George W. Bush and Jeb Bush, Jan. 1, 1955. Sygma/Corbis  From left to right: Doro, Marvin, Neil, and Jeb Bush, fall 1963. George Bush Presidential Library  From left to right: Doro, George, Jeb, Marvin, George W., Neil, and Barbara Bush, 1966. George Bush Presidential Library  Jeb Bush (center) was the varsity tennis team captain during his senior year at Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass., 1971. Seth Poppel/Yearbook Library  George Bush and his four sons, Neil, Jeb, George W. and Marvin in 1970. Bob E. Daemmrich—Sygma/Corbis  Jeb and Columba Bush on their wedding day, Feb. 23, 1974. George Bush Presidential Library  Jeb Bush loudly applauds his father, Republican presidential hopeful George Bush, at a campaign rally in Concord, N.H. on Feb. 28, 1980. Frank Lorenzo—Bettmann/Corbis  Vice President George Bush holds a fish with his sons George W. and Jeb during a family vacation in Kennebunkport, Maine in Aug. 1983. Cynthia Johnson—Getty Images  From left to right (without children): Neil and Sharon Bush, George W. Bush and wife Laura, Barbara and George Bush, Margaret and Marvin, Bobby Koch and Dorothy, Jeb and Columba, are seen in this Bush family photo taken in Kennebunkport, Maine on Aug. 24, 1986. Dave Valdez—White House/Sygma/Corbis  Jeb Bush plays cards with his son while riding in a recreational vehicle, Nov. 8, 1993. Christopher Little—Corbis  Jeb Bush is interviewed at a Miami Radio Station, WIOD, Mar. 1980\. He went on to become Governor of Florida in 1999. Tim Chapman—Getty Images  George W. Bush and Jeb Bush at the Republican Governors' Convention in New Orleans, 1998. Nina Berman—SIPA  Texas governor George W. Bush celebrates good news with his brother, Florida governor Jeb Bush, while watching the presidential election returns, prior to being elected as President of the United States, inside the Governor's Mansion in Austin, Nov. 7, 2000. Brooks Kraft—Sygma/Corbis  Republican governor of Florida, Jeb Bush, studies his laptop watching vote returns for his reelection his wife Columba Bush and his parents, former President George Bush and first lady Barbara Bush in Miami on Nov. 5, 2002. Joe Burbank—Orlando Sentinel/MCT/Getty Images  Republican nominee for President, Mitt Romney, campaigns around Florida with Governor Jeb Bush, left, Senator Marco Rubio, right, and Congressman Connie Mack, left back of head, in Coral Gables, Fla. on Oct., 31, 2012. Melina Mara—The Washington Post/Getty Images  Jeb Bush speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Md. on Feb. 27, 2015. Mark Peterson—Redux for TIME _Read next:_ [_Jeb Bush Wishes He Could Speak Like Obama_](http://time.com/3961560/jeb-bush-barack-obama-charisma/?iid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") [_Listen to the most important stories of the day_](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/autoplay/?xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined") Jeb Bush Hails San Francisco Uber, Doesn't Win Driver's Vote ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3961288/jeb-bush-uber-san-francisco/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3961288/jeb-bush-uber-san-francisco/"},"headline":"Jeb Bush Hails Uber In San Francisco, Doesn't Win Driver's Vote","datePublished":"2015-07-16T19:07:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:02:26.727Z","description":"The Uber driver who picked up Jeb Bush Thursday on a San Francisco street corner doesn't normally vote and didn't recognize the Republican frontrunner. 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