Nithya Raman’s entry into the 2026 Los Angeles mayoral race represents the arrival of Mamdani-style socialism in California politics.
As a card-carrying member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), and a current member of the LA City Council, Raman has positioned himself as a true progressive opponent of incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, criticizing her on housing affordability and city services.
But in pursuing the mayoralty, Raman risks turning L.A. into another experiment in municipal socialism gone wrong, where ideological zeal meets skill.
Raman’s career path, from city planner and activist to upset council victory in 2020, reveals a pattern of ideological purity that prioritizes social theory over practical solutions.
His policies will undoubtedly alienate allies and exacerbate problems such as homelessness, crime, and financial hardship.
At the heart of Raman’s controversial position is his relationship with the DSA, including calls for an end to prisons, defunding of the police, and a view of Israel as an apartheid state to be subsidized and misled.
Raman’s membership of the DSA has led him to introduce extreme views that are at odds with the city’s mainstream Democratic values. His vote against the LAPD’s 2023 contract, which aimed to increase pay while increasing accountability, was described as a move against police, especially as his district faced rising crime.
His far-left world view leads him to blame problems on capitalism rather than the immediate needs of public safety, such as the theft of catalytic converters, which he says alarmingly is caused by Toyota rather than criminals.
There are currently no mayors in the 88 largest cities in LA County that are members of the DSA, but there is ample evidence that the Democratic Party has shifted to the left in recent years, particularly at the LA City Council and LAUSD levels.
DSA-Los Angeles claims a growing influence as part of progressive/labor coalitions, with Council members Eunisses Hernandez, Hugo Soto-Martinez, and Ysabel Jurado forming a bloc They want to be reformed away from business and labor clauses, directed at pro-tenant, labor policies.
The LAUSD school board has also shifted to the left, influenced by the rise of teacher unions. And voters themselves are struggling to endorse left-leaning measures such as higher estate taxes and far-reaching protections for employers.
In theory, Raman’s policies allowed chaos, displacing businesses and residents while turning LA into an unruly place.
Ironically, some on the left see Raman as a salesman, as he navigates relationships with the city’s establishment. Recently, for example, he called for Measure ULA, the “household tax,” to be changed so that it would not be subject to a statewide referendum. That didn’t endear him to some progressives, who still believe in the tax, despite the lack of results on affordable housing.
Raman’s alignment with figures such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), Bernie Sanders, and New York City’s Zohran Mamdani underscores his place in social democracy, but also reveals a shared weakness that could end his mayoral ambitions.
Are LA voters listening?
As AOC, Raman rose through the ranks of activists, emphasizing Green New Deal-inspired climate policies and anti-business tactics. AOC’s social media flamboyance reflects Raman’s style of social interaction.
But Raman’s parallels with Mamdani, a DSA-backed progressive colleague, tell a cautionary tale. Both represent alternatives to policing, and public investment in services, to complement DSA priorities such as protecting homeless encampments.
However, Mamdani’s first month in office has been a series of failures that could spell disaster for Raman LA. Mamdani’s response during the snow in mid-January was unsuccessful, with fatal results. The appointment was marred by scandals, revealing the failure of the test.
These missteps show potential pitfalls for Raman, whose council position is already showing similar cracks. At the beginning of his term on the city council, he pushed to allocate public land to developers without input from the public. More recently, he has been used to abuse his power on the Planning and Land Use Management committee when he filed a petition to demolish his own home in Silver Lake.
Raman combines the strong edge of DSA, compromising the separation observed earlier by Mamdani. In LA, where homelessness persists despite some “compassionate” measures, and budget gaps are closing, Raman’s mayoral bid could exacerbate the city’s woes.
Raman’s policy alignment with DSA and Mamdani, such as strong climate neutrality by 2030, increasing affordable housing through rent controls, and equity reforms, sounds attractive, but often falls short in practice.
His promise of “budget engagement” is in line with Sanders’ economic preferences, while Mamdani’s budget compromises suggest that Raman will face similar pressures, likely abandoning bold promises of survival. He could risk alienating his base while failing to win over skeptics.
The broader implications of Raman’s candidacy concern the future of LA.
As LA grapples with wildfires, economic problems, and social divisions, electing someone whose council record is defined by conflict and DSA alignment may exacerbate rather than alleviate these challenges, prioritizing ideology over what residents need to govern.
Richie Greenberg is a political analyst based in San Francisco.
