Mayor Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman traded accusations over Hollywood job losses and the Palisades fire response Tuesday, Oct. 13, in the only televised debate of the Los Angeles mayoral general election.

The debate, hosted by NBC4 and Telemundo 52 in partnership with Loyola Marymount University at the networks' Universal City studios, came three weeks before the Nov. 3 election. Moderators were NBC4 Chief Political Reporter Conan Nolan, NBC4 anchor Colleen Williams and Telemundo 52 anchor Alejandra Ortiz. Mail ballots have already been sent to voters.

Film tax credits

Hollywood's job exodus surfaced in the debate's final minutes when moderators asked how each candidate would bring production work back to Los Angeles. Both support an uncapped state film tax credit, but Raman accused Bass of arriving late to the issue.

"This mayor only started talking about this tax credit after I entered the race," Raman said, according to TheWrap. Bass called the claim "completely untrue" and pointed to her time as California Assembly speaker, saying she authored the state's first film tax credit.

Raman, whose husband is a television writer, said the industry's decline hits her own household. She criticized Bass for waiting three years before appointing Board of Public Works President Steve Kang as a part-time film liaison in August 2025. Raman called for a fully staffed film office in the mayor's office with people who have production experience, contrasting it with what she called Bass's part-time approach.

Bass countered that she had been advocating for state and federal credits throughout her tenure, working in partnership with the industry.

Palisades fire

The debate's sharpest personal exchange centered on Bass's absence during the Palisades Fire. Bass was in Ghana for the inauguration of President John Dramani Mahama as part of a U.S. delegation when the fire erupted Jan. 7, 2025. City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson signed the emergency proclamation in her place, FOX 11 reported. Bass returned to Los Angeles on Jan. 8, 2025.

"I am so profoundly sorry that I was not in my city when my city needed me," Bass said at the debate, according to The Center Square.

Raman pledged to appoint "a real Palisades czar" to help residents rebuild and promised that if elected, voters would not have to wonder where their mayor was during an emergency. Bass fired LAFD Chief Kristin Crowley in February 2025 over her handling of the fire.

Other flashpoints

Bass confronted Raman over a since-deleted social media video in which Raman and influencer Ed Choi repeated the phrase "Only you can stop fascist liars" as an image of Bass appeared on screen, the LA Daily News reported. Raman's campaign said the phrase referred to federal immigration enforcement, not Bass. Raman acknowledged reposting the video was a mistake.

Raman also said she would replace LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell but declined to commit to a timeline before the 2028 Olympics. Bass said she does not support renewing the city's contract with Flock Safety, the automatic license plate reader vendor, over data-sharing concerns.

The race

Bass finished first in the June 2 primary with 34.3% of the vote. Raman took 29%. A September UC Berkeley Institute of Government Studies poll, co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, showed Raman leading 39% to 28%, with about a third of likely voters undecided.

No sitting City Council member has endorsed Raman.

Independent expenditure committees had spent $5 million supporting Bass and $4.2 million backing Raman as of Oct. 8, according to the Westside Current.