Overview
- At a downtown kickoff, Bass pledged to reduce homelessness, improve public safety and affordability, and resist stepped-up federal immigration operations.
- She cast the campaign as a defense of Los Angeles from attacks "from 3,000 miles away," saying the city should not have to defend itself from its own government.
- A federal judge blocked the recent deployment of National Guard troops tied to immigration enforcement in the city, a dispute Bass has repeatedly highlighted.
- The 2026 field already includes Austin Beutner, Rae Huang and Asaad Alnajjar, while Rick Caruso has not announced his plans.
- Bass faces ongoing criticism over January’s Palisades Fire response, with a Berkeley IGS poll finding 30% rated it "very poor" and Beutner calling it a failure of leadership.