Eric Garcetti

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass faces City Councilmember Nithya Raman in Tuesday's election, with housing affordability as the central issue. Bass touts more than 10,000 income-restricted apartments built during her term, driven largely by her Executive Directive One permitting reform, though analysts note much of that progress stems from pre-existing Proposition HHH funding and that overall housing production has lagged. Raman, running as a pro-development YIMBY candidate, criticizes Bass for rolling back ED 1 near single-family zones and opposing a state density law, while Bass warns that looser rules risk displacing low-income residents.

Both candidates back lower rent-control caps and reforming the city's "mansion tax," but diverge sharply on zoning and development approach heading into the vote.

Los Angeles's Fairfax District, once a thriving symbol of the California dream, is grappling with a roughly 20% storefront vacancy rate, crumbling sidewalks, and struggling businesses, including the well-known comedy club The Dime, which now faces closure. Local leaders, including LA Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky, acknowledge the neighborhood's streets need repair and that the COVID-19 pandemic dealt a severe blow to retailers already losing ground to online shopping.

The district has struggled to recover from lockdowns imposed during the pandemic and from unrest in late May 2020, when protests tied to the Black Lives Matter movement turned destructive, with rioters smashing storefronts and setting police cars ablaze. Business owners say they felt abandoned as the city failed to protect them. Rising sales taxes, including a countywide increase approved by voters in June, add further strain. Rebuilding the area, observers say, will require renewed jobs tied to Hollywood, infrastructure fixes, homeless encampment cleanup, and restored public safety.