Wave Wire Services
LOS ANGELES — Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilwoman Nithya Raman faced off May 5 in a heated 90-minute debate that featured finger-pointing on the city’s dual affordability and homelessness crisis while also explaining how they would move Los Angeles forward.
Raman opened the mayoral debate by reiterating why she’s running, stating she’s feeling frustrated like so many Angelenos about the direction the city is headed on fiscal stability, housing costs, homelessness and other issues.
Bass followed by stating she wants a second term to continue the progress she’s made on reducing street homelessness by about 18% — according to the annual point-in-time homeless count produced by Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority — reducing crime and creating additional housing.
“I’m not just saying patience,” Bass said. “I do not have any patience honestly, which is why I have come to this job with a 24-hour-a-day, seven-days-a-week commitment because when I take an issue, I head into an issue.”
Bass criticized Raman for failing to address key issues while being at City Hall “twice as long as I have” and leading one of the “most important committees.”
Raman was the first South Asian woman elected to the City Council in 2020. She was appointed as chair of the council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee in 2022.
Raman defended herself noting that it’s wrong to strictly place the blame on one member of the City Council when there are 14 others creating policies for the city.
The councilwoman highlighted how the city has broken streetlights, deteriorating sidewalks, and dirty streets under Bass’ watch.
Bass and Raman sparred on housing and homelessness for a majority of the debate, criticizing one another on the roll out of Senate Bill 79, which goes into effect July 1. The law mandates that California cities allow the construction of dense housing projects along major transit corridors.
Bass had originally urged state legislators not to support the bill, and has since then encouraged efforts by the city to delay its implementation.
Raman, on the other hand, has advocated for building more housing across the city while allowing some less dense housing projects in single-family zones.
The two argued over the effectiveness of Bass’ signature program Inside Safe, which aims to reduce street encampments and move homeless individuals to temporary housing sites such as motels, hotels and homeless shelters.
Bass maintains her program has been pivotal in reducing street homelessness and moving unhoused individuals into safe housing. A Los Angeles Times analysis found the $300 million program, now in its third year, has had 40% of participants return to the streets.
Raman says Inside Safe is too costly and argued there’s a more cost-efficient way to address encampments. The councilwoman has advocated for the use of time-limited subsidies, street medicine teams, and other initiatives as alternatives.
Raman also vowed that she would reduce encampments across the city prior to the 2028 Olympic Games.
Bass says Raman’s plans are “intellectual” and would be difficult for them to succeed.
The two sparred over the city’s anti-camping law, with Bass criticizing Raman for voting against creating new anti-camping zones in the city. Raman has argued that the law has not reduced homelessness, but rather forced unhoused individuals to move from place to place.
When asked whether she blocked an audit of Inside Safe by City Controller Kenneth Mejia, Bass responded she did.
“I don’t believe that one elected official should audit another. It politicizes the entire process,” Bass said, adding the City Charter does not allow the controller to audit other elected offices.
The two spoke on efforts to increase police hiring. Bass has called for restoring the police force to 9,500 officers while Raman said she wants to maintain the current size of about 8,550 and bolster other ways to improve public safety.
Raman emphasized that Bass and the City Council approved a costly labor contract with the Los Angeles Police Protective League — the union representing Los Angeles Police Department officers rank lieutenant and below — and yet the number of sworn officers has continued to shrink.
Raman said the contract, in part, led to the nearly $1 billion deficit that was closed this fiscal year.
Bass went on to criticize Raman for voting against providing an initial $23 million for a new round of recruits earlier this year.
“That one class had a higher number,” Raman said. “Every other class has been very small, and the budget was literally in three months. We could have planned and budgeted for the appropriate number of officers.
“I did vote against it because constituents deserve better than political theater.”
The much-anticipated debate was limited to Bass and Raman, with the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association excluding other candidates such as Spencer Pratt, Adam Miller and Rae Huang. Organizers emphasized they reached out to the other candidates and offered them an opportunity to speak with their members.
“In a time when political forums can often feel crowded, chaotic, and more performative than productive, we have made a deliberate decision to do something different,” the association wrote in its description of the debate.
“Rather than hosting a stage filled with a long list of candidates, we have chosen to invite these two leaders specifically because they represent Sherman Oaks on two critical — and complementary — levels of government.”
A spokesperson for Miller’s campaign criticized the decision to exclude him from the forum.
“Adam Miller is the only real change maker in this race with a proven record of delivering results,” the spokesperson said. “It’s a missed opportunity for these voters not to hear directly from a candidate offering a different approach to solving LA’s biggest issues, especially on housing, homelessness, and public safety.”
Representatives for Pratt and Huang did not respond to requests for comment.
