LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass will formally begin her campaign for reelection Saturday with a rally in downtown Los Angeles, two days after the third anniversary of her being sworn in.
Bass will speak about the reduction of homelessness along with “what she’s done to improve public safety” and her efforts against the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration, Doug Herman, a political strategist for Bass’ campaign, told City News Service during a telephone interview.
Three people have formally begun campaigns against Bass — Austin Beutner, former superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District; Rae Huang, a deputy director of Housing Now California; and Asaad Alnajjar, a Porter Ranch Neighborhood Council member and longtime city employee.
Billionaire developer Rick Caruso, who lost to Bass in the 2022 general election, has yet to announce whether he will again run for mayor or will instead run for governor.
The election will be held June 2. If no candidate receives a majority, a runoff will be held Nov. 3 among the top two finishers.
Beutner has questioned Bass’ record on crime and development issues, and criticized the response to January’s devastating Palisades Fire, telling the Los Angeles Times that the city showed a “failure of leadership” as historically strong winds spread flames through the expensive coastal enclave, gutting thousands of homes and businesses, and killing 12 people.
When the fire broke out Bass was in Ghana as part of the four-member presidential delegation attending the inauguration of John Dramani Mahama as president.
A poll of 5,184 registered voters in Los Angeles County conducted Feb. 17-26 by the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies found that 30% said Bass did a “very poor job” in responding to the fire, with another 14% saying she did a poor job, 18% a fair job, 12% a good job and 6% an excellent job, while 20% had no opinion.
Huang has pledged “to make housing affordable for all … make transit free, safe and fast” and “make sure that wages and work are dignified.”
Alnajjar has said he would;
— “resolve homelessness by going to the roots of the issues facing families that are unhoused such as drug addiction/alcoholism, loss of income due to job loss, and providing housing at a reasonable costs to the city”;
— “fast-track affordable housing approvals and disaster rebuilding permits, cutting through bureaucracy”; and
— “strengthen wildfire prevention and disaster readiness with modernized systems and well-planned effective community-based response plans.”
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