Exclusive: LA City Councilmember Nithya Raman talks about her last-minute run for mayor

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman said Monday that Los Angeles appears to be in a “moment of turmoil” that played a role in her last-minute surprise challenge to Karen Bass in the upcoming mayoral election.

Raman announced plans to run against Bass at a Saturday news conference and spoke with NBC4’s Conan Nolan Monday about her decision in an exclusive interview.

“I have been very, very frustrated with Los Angeles for the last few months,” Raman said Monday. “I can’t get a streetlight fixed for a year unless I put discretionary funds into it. We haven’t paved a single mile of streets in LA over this last year.

“We’re at a moment where we’re not delivering on the basics at a time whent he public has trusted us with hundreds of millions of dollars to solve complex problems like our housing crisis and our homelessness crisis. I feel like Los Angeles is really in a moment of turmoil, right now.”

Raman said she waited to hear what conversations were being had about Los Angeles in the mayoral race, but did not hear matters that were important to her being discussed.

“I was waiting in this mayor’s race to see what people would talk about,” Raman said. “Let’s talk about the future of Los Angeles and what it deserves. Ultimately, I just didn’t see that conversation happening.

“We can fix this. We can fix these services. We can make Los Angeles work again.”

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman announced her run for Los Angeles mayor in a press conference on Saturday. Annette Arreola reports for NBC4 at 6pm on Feb. 7, 2026.

The Fourth District rep has been on the city council since 2020. The district includes Los Feliz, Reseda, the Hollywood Hills and other parts of LA’s San Fernando Valley.

She will face a field that includes Bass and former reality TV star Spencer Pratt with the primary set for June 2. Raman, 44, said she informed Bass of her candidacy, which came to fruition just hours before the filing deadline, before the weekend announcement.

She had previously endorsed Bass’ re-election.

“Right now, I feel a call from Los Angeles for change across the entire city,” Raman said. “I feel a sense of frustration and even despondency.”

NBC4’s Conan Nolan speaks with City Councilmember Nithya Raman about why the council voted to reject SB 79, which would have allowed density housing along transit lines.

Bass campaign advisor Douglas Herman issued the following statement in response to Raman’s announcement: “The last thing Los Angeles needs is a politician who opposed cleaning up homeless encampments and efforts to make our city safer. Mayor Bass will continue changing L.A. by building on her track record delivering L.A.‘s first sustained decrease in street homelessness, a 60 year-low in homicides, and the most aggressive agenda our city has ever seen to make our city more affordable.”

In another recent mayoral race development, Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath announced Friday night she will not run for mayor. In a statement released Friday night, Horvath said she decided after “much prayer and many honest conversations” with her family, friends and political allies.

Former LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner announced the end of his campaign Thursday, citing the death of his daughter at age 22. Billionaire developer Rick Caruson, Bass’ opponent in the last election, re-affirmed his decision not to enter the race.