Bass, Raman Spar Over Homelessness, Police Chief In Final Debate Before Election

LOS ANGELES, CA — Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilwoman Nithya Raman exchanged harsh words and criticized one another's record on homelessness and public safety Tuesday evening during a televised debate, as they each attempted to persuade Angelenos to support their mayoral bids three weeks before the Nov. 3 general election.

During opening remarks, Bass touted her accomplishments in reducing homelessness for the first time in years through her signature initiative, Inside Safe, as well as supporting the construction of affordable housing units via her first executive directive.

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Bass emphasized that voters will have a significant choice for mayor.

"Voters need to look at my team. She (Raman) has been in Los Angeles for 13 years and has served on two councils at that time. She has consistently voted against police officers. She has consistently voted to not remove encampments in front of schools, so parents and kids have to navigate their way through," Bass said.

"There is a better way to go," Bass added.

Raman, who represents the 4th Council District, touted that her policies resulted in nearly 50% reduction in homelessness for her district. The councilwoman countered that under Bass, the city is struggling.

"As I have been around the city talking to voters through this campaign, the answer for too many Angelenos has been the same... what I have heard from them is that we've had a major who has been MIA. For me, that is simply unacceptable," Raman said.

"I know that the city can do better," Raman added. "We've seen a reduction in homelessness, nearly 50%, even as it rose across the city, and I've delivered real constituent services consistently. And that's what I hope to deliver."

While the city experienced a reduction in homelessness in the last three years, there was a 3.4% increase from 2025, according to data from the annual point-in-time count.

Bass argued the increased was a result of state legislators reducing funding for L.A. She further stated that L.A. needs to be in complete control of the system.

"So, we can have transparency and accountability. No more debt working with the county," Bass added.

Raman, however, said that progress on reducing homelessness has been slow.

"Under this mayor's leadership, we have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into an incredibly expensive program, Inside Safe, which has been unaccountable to the public, for which she (Bass) has refused audits, and which has brought down homelessness a little bit, but at extraordinary cost."

Raman argued that homelessness is picking up again and the city is looking exactly as it did when Bass was sworn-in. Bass has criticized Raman for leading the City Council's homelessness committee but not creating enough results.

Raman's colleague, Councilwoman Imelda Padilla, had previously said that her time working on the same committee as Raman was the most unproductive time spent as a council member.

However, under Raman's leadership, the city implemented new tenant protections and capped rent at 3% for rent-stabilized housing units, which was approved by Mayor Karen Bass. Together, they approved some of the city's most important ordinances for renters.

The councilwoman explained that one of her biggest accomplishments was setting up a team to monitor every dollar used for homelessness and track its performance.

The city's anti-camping law, known as 41.18, was another thorny topic that came up for Raman, as Bass hounded the councilwoman for voting against other council members efforts to set up more areas barring homeless encampments.

Raman emphasized that as a mother of 10-year-old twins who walk to school every single day to their Los Angeles Unified School District campus their safety matters so much to her, just as the safety of every child in the city.

"Homelessness on our streets is unacceptable to me. That's why I push back against the kind of legislation that, at its most effective, uses scarcity resources to move an encampment across the street," Raman said.

Raman said she would not seek to repeal the ordinance as mayor, though she would work to ensure there are no encampments on any city blocks.

Bass challenged Raman's remarks, noting that the councilwoman has supported Inside Safe. The incumbent further attempted to paint Raman as someone who is hard to work with.

"As a matter of fact, you had to twist their arms to get them to even serve on the committee. They don't find you to be basically honest," Bass said. "If you cannot manage the work of your committee, how on earth are you going to manage the second largest city in the country?"

Raman contended that her colleagues had no trouble putting her in leadership on the council before she decided to push against a system that was failing Los Angeles when she ran against Bass.

"I didn't want to wait four more years for change to happen simply because that's what establishment politics decided to do," Raman said. "I think Angelenos, you're going to hear a lot of insults tonight, personal insults, because this mayor cannot defend her record of the last four years."

Raman was questioned about a since-deleted social media post in which she was interviewed by an influencer who referred to the city and Los Angeles Police Department as extremely fascist.

Raman clarified she was asked about the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She said she was being critical of ICE for taking terrible actions on the city's streets.

"I believe ICE is being racist on our streets. Immigrants are terrified here in the city of Los Angeles, and I will speak up against the actions of ICE and the actions of the Trump administration on our streets every single day."

Raman emphasized that she would never imply that the city, Bass, or the police chief is fascist. Bass jumped on the opportunity to criticize Raman for those comments.

"It made me wonder whether you understood what the word fascism meant. But it also just showed that you're not ready for prime time," Bass said.

Raman noted that she wants to replace the LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell, adding that she doesn't believe he has met the moment.

"I believe he's lost the trust of Angelenos, especially in response to the ICE raids. It is not a unilateral decision by the mayor. It takes agreement with the police commission, even agreement with the council. I will work toward it while keeping the safety of Angelenos paramount," Raman said.

Bass criticized Raman for considering the removal of the chief as the 2028 Olympic Games approach. The incumbent said such a decision would send the LAPD into disarray.

The candidates fielded questions on public safety, homelessness, housing and economic development, along with other issues facing the city.

Bass was questioned about the increase in officer-involved-shootings. In 2025, there a was a more than 60% increase in such shootings despite a multi- year reduction in violent crime.

Bass shared that she was worried at the lack of training officers get and wants to change that. She argued that there would be a reduction in officer- involved shootings if and when there's more focus on people experiencing mental illness.

Raman went on the offensive arguing that the LAPD has significantly reduced information sharing under Bass' administration, such as with neighborhood-level crime data and license plate readers.

"All of those issues are not being shared with the public, and I think it contributes to the lack of trust. We need change. We need to restore trust in our law enforcement," Raman added.

NBC4 anchor Colleen Williams, NBC4 Chief Political Reporter Conan Nolan and Telemundo 52 anchor Alejandra Ortiz moderated the debate, which was organized in partnership with Loyola Marymount University.

The one-hour debate was televised by NBC4 and Telemundo 52 and streamed on the stations' websites, mobile apps and local news streaming channels.

By Jose Herrera, City News Service