LOS ANGELES (CNS) – A Los Angeles mayoral candidate forum scheduled for broadcast Wednesday on Fox11 was officially canceled Monday after two of the five participants decided to withdraw from the event.
The League of Women Voters and the Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs, organizers of the forum, said they regretted having to announce the cancellation.
“We are very disappointed the forum is not taking place. These forums provide voters with the opportunity to hear candidates share their perspectives, respond to questions and engage with one another on issues facing Los Angeles,” according to a statement from the event organizers.
Five candidates were invited, with only four of them originally committing to participate: incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, City Councilwoman Nithya Raman, businessman Adam Miller and community advocate Rae Huang. Reality TV star Spencer Pratt declined to participate, citing a scheduling conflict.
Over the weekend, Bass announced her decision to withdraw from participating in the forum. Raman also withdrew Monday, explaining that she had agreed to participate in order to debate Bass.
With only two candidates remaining, the event partners agreed not to proceed.
Last week, Bass, Pratt and Raman participated in a debate televised on NBC4. Additionally, Bass and Raman debated in a private event hosted by the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association.
“We debated our top two opponents twice this week, and it’s been made clear that neither is up to the job,” Alex Stack of the Bass campaign told City News Service on Saturday. “Mayor Bass will be in Sacramento that day fighting for funding for housing, homelessness, and Palisades recovery, and will also discuss the city and state partnership on the Olympics and World Cup.”
The campaign released a slightly longer statement a couple of hours later, which read in part: “The people of L.A. saw twice last week that Nithya Raman and Spencer Pratt are not up to the job as mayor. That goes beyond performance — the ineffectiveness and contradictions in their campaign promises were clearly revealed, especially for Councilwoman Raman, who has had six years to deliver real solutions but still hasn’t. And she simply could not defend or hide her repeated votes to allow encampments near schools and to stop the hiring of new police officers. So, it’s time to move past debates.”
Miller’s campaign criticized both Bass and Pratt for declining to participate in Wednesday’s debate.
“When candidates back out of televised public debates, what does that say about their commitment and accountability to the people of Los Angeles? Adam Miller believes voters should have every opportunity to hear directly from the candidates, especially since many Angelenos are frustrated with the city’s direction and are still deciding whom they trust to lead it forward,” a Miller campaign spokesperson said Saturday. “As the only executive leader in this race with a proven record of results, Adam looks forward to sharing his vision and plans to fix LA on the May 13 debate stage, and anywhere else Mayor Bass or Spencer Pratt are willing to show up.”
Raman’s campaign issued a statement to City News Service highlighting her platform:
“At the debate, Nithya highlighted her progressive vision to make L.A. affordable for everyone. That includes her council record of capping rent increases for 1 million tenants and reducing homeless encampments in her district by 54%. And that includes her plan as mayor to triple housing production to lower costs and restore basic services to improve our quality of life. Voters can see that Nithya is the clear alternative to the broken status quo of the incumbent mayor, and MAGA Republican Spencer Pratt.”
When Bass, Raman and Pratt shared the stage during last week’s NBC4 debate, they clashed over homelessness, public safety and housing, offering competing visions for addressing the city’s ongoing challenges.
Bass defended her record as mayor, pointing to efforts to reduce encampments and expand housing, while arguing that continuity in leadership is needed to sustain progress.
Raman highlighted her progressive platform, emphasizing tenant protections and increased housing production, while presenting herself as an alternative to the current administration.
Pratt, a political newcomer, criticized city leadership and positioned himself as an outsider candidate, focusing on public frustration with crime and quality-of-life issues.
The exchanges underscored the sharp contrasts among the candidates as the June 2 primary approaches.
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