Karen Bass now trails left-wing challenger Nithya Raman in a campaign poll, putting the Los Angeles mayor’s race and its unsettled voters under fresh scrutiny.
Raman’s campaign released an internal poll showing the Los Angeles councilwoman leading Bass, 44% to 39%. Another 17% of likely voters remained undecided.
Breitbart reported that Hart Research Associates surveyed 600 likely voters in early September. The poll carried a four-point margin of error.
Bass’s campaign declined to release its own polling. That leaves voters comparing surveys promoted by rival camps and unnamed groups supporting one candidate or the other.
An internal poll can offer a useful snapshot, but the sponsor controls whether the results become public. Here, the full wording, sample makeup and methodology were not disclosed.
A separate survey paid for by a group supporting Raman initially placed Bass ahead, 38% to 37%. After voters received more information about the candidates, Raman led 41% to 34%.
A group backing Bass pointed to an early August poll with the opposite result. It showed Bass leading 41% to 35%, while nearly one-quarter of voters remained undecided.
After that survey presented information about both candidates, Bass’s lead grew to 45% against Raman’s 33%. Its margin of error was not provided, while the pro-Raman group’s survey had a 3.7-point margin.
The competing results do not prove that Los Angeles voters moved sharply from Bass to Raman. Different sponsors and undisclosed methods make a direct comparison difficult.
Still, the fight fits a wider struggle over who controls the political left. Similar pressure has surfaced in the Warren-Schumer power struggle over the Democratic Party’s direction.
Raman’s campaign also released a Hollywood-themed advertisement featuring the voice of actor and screenwriter Bob Odenkirk. The ad shows Raman at a taco stand and presents her as the candidate of “change” and “affordability.”
Bass took a different route. Her digital advertisement focuses on the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations and includes footage from MacArthur Park in July 2025.
In the ad, Bass says, “When someone comes after your family, you don’t hesitate,” before adding, “You stand up. You fight.” The footage shows her confronting federal agents at the Los Angeles park.
The contrast is plain. Raman is pitching economic change, while Bass is using opposition to federal immigration enforcement as a central campaign message.
Such competition on the left does not always produce reliable alliances. The recent decision by AOC and Sanders to withhold support from a socialist ally showed how quickly those ties can strain.
The strongest number for Raman may not be her five-point lead. It may be the 17% who had not chosen either candidate in her campaign’s poll.
Both sides also reported different outcomes after giving voters more information. Yet neither disclosed the full text used to describe the candidates, making those follow-up numbers harder to judge.
That matters because campaign-funded polling often serves two purposes: measuring voters and shaping the race. Releasing favorable results can attract attention, donors and political support even when key details remain private.
Public disputes among left-wing factions are hardly confined to California. A recent DSA dispute in Queens offered another example of allies turning their disagreements into open political conflict.
Bass now faces a campaign poll that puts her behind, while her own campaign keeps its numbers private. Raman has an opening, but voters still lack enough public data to know how firm that lead may be.
Los Angeles voters deserve more than selective polling and polished ads. They deserve clear records, full answers and a mayor focused on the city’s basic obligations.
