The two candidates vying to be the next mayor of Los Angeles spent Halloween sharing their last-minute messages to voters, many of whom are turning out to the polls on the last weekend before Election Day.
With only three days until the Nov. 3 midterm election, voters across Southern California are stuffing the ballot drop boxes and casting their vote in person to make sure their selections are counted.
Meanwhile, LA mayoral candidates incumbent Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman traveled to multiple events on Saturday, trying to convince voters why they should lead the city for the next four years.
Bass started the day at a rally for union workers, before visiting small businesses in the Boyle Heights community. She says she’s the best choice to address issues Angelenos will face as the city prepares to host the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
“This is about affordability. It’s about safety, and it is about opportunity,” Bass said. “The opportunities that are coming our way in the next two and a half years.”
The incumbent also criticized Raman’s record.
“I don’t know what her position is. One minute, she’s firing the police chief. The next minute, she’s not,” Bass said. “We need stability. We don’t need to have the uncertainty of somebody who wants to come in and experiment on our city.”
Raman hit back at the mayor, saying Bass hasn’t delivered on issues like public safety and homelessness.
“Under this mayor’s leadership, by every metric that matters for Angelenos, things have gotten worse in LA,” Raman said.
The councilwoman on Saturday spoke to hospitality union workers, judged a Halloween costume contest in Encino and then joined a tailgate outside the LA Memorial Coliseum for the University of Southern California football game against Ohio State.
“As mayor and along with Supervisor (Lindsey) Horvath, we’re going to address homelessness with the urgency that it deserves,” Raman said. “And we’re going to address it with the accountability that it deserves.”
NBCLA asked some voters about what issues pushed them to send in their ballots. They pointed to the cost of living, Proposition 40 — the so-called billionaire tax — and Latino representation.
“Getting the costs down for people that can’t afford to live,” a voter named Linda said. “It’s very difficult. I’m one of those now that have a fixed income.”
