LA Councilmember Nithya Raman Enters Mayoral Race

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman entered the race for mayor on Saturday, announcing her challenge to incumbent Mayor Karen Bass just hours before the filing deadline for the June 2 primary. The 44-year-old progressive, who represents a district stretching from Silver Lake to Sherman Oaks, positioned herself as a fighter for the city amid concerns over public safety, housing affordability and basic infrastructure.

In an interview with NBC Los Angeles on Monday, Raman emphasized maintaining the Los Angeles Police Department's current staffing levels of about 8,700 sworn officers. "We need to maintain the size of our police force and grapple with the fact that even the size of our existing police force is not enough to respond to 911 calls in a timely fashion," she said. Raman highlighted delays in emergency responses, noting that callers should not wait an hour for help, and advocated for alternatives such as unarmed personnel handling nonviolent incidents like mental health crises or traffic enforcement.

This stance marks a shift from Raman's 2020 council campaign, when she received support from the Democratic Socialists of America and called to "defund the police,"...