Nithya Raman Faces 2 Challengers For LA City Council District 4 Seat

LOS ANGELES, CA — Nithya Raman is seeking her second term on the Los Angeles City Council from District 4, but her two challengers in Tuesday's primary election say it's time for a change.

Deputy City Attorney Ethan Weaver and Levon "Lev" Baronian, an engineer and neighborhood council member, are vying to replace Raman in the district that encompasses parts of Studio City, Sherman Oaks, Van Nuys, Reseda, Los Feliz, Silver Lake, Hollywood and Encino.

Both challengers take positions to the right of Raman, who is one of the more progressive members of the council.

If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in the primary, the top two vote-getters will face each other in a runoff in the general election on Nov. 5.

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Of the three candidates, only Raman responded to a request from City News Service for comment.

Raman expressed pride in what her team accomplished for the district over the last three-plus years. She touted her work to reduce homelessness and bring hundreds of people indoors into shelter; passing legislation to protect renters; improving the environment; and endeavoring to reform city government.

"All of our work is about rebuilding trust in city leadership, which has been so shaken by scandal after scandal," Raman said. "L.A. needs to be able to have faith that its leaders are working on behalf of residents, not corporations and special interests."

Raman has raised about $438,000 in campaign contributions, and has also been supported through an additional $400,000-plus in independent expenditures from groups such as LA Forward, the labor union Unite Here Local 11 and California Courage.

Independent expenditures are payments in connection with a communication such as a flyer, advertisement or text message that advocates for or against a candidate, and they cannot be conducted in coordination with the candidate, committee or agent.

Meanwhile, other groups — including the union representing the rank- and-file of Los Angeles Police Department sworn officers, the real estate company Douglas Emmett Management, and the United Firefighters of LA City Local 112, among others — have poured independent-expenditure money into Weaver's campaign.

Weaver has raised some $345,000 in contributions and benefited from more than $708,000 in independent expenditures. Baronian has raised about $39,000 in campaign contributions.

In response to a question about how money is impacting the race, Raman said special interests have used unregulated spending to shape city policy for decades.

"The corporate landlords who are spending the most in this race are doing so in response to the package of renter protections I authored and got passed last year," she said. "I feel strongly about removing the influence of dark money from our policymaking, and I fear what it means for our city if this money successfully buys an election."

As part of her campaign, Raman has prioritized housing and homelessness, governance reform and bolstering renter's rights, and zeroed in on the environment, transportation and parks as part of her platform.

As chair of the council's Housing and Homeless Committee, Raman developed programs and laws to streamline the process of obtaining affordable housing; led the implementation of the United to House LA tax measure (also known as Measure ULA); and made it easier for developers to engage with the city on major projects.

Weaver and Baronian have both criticized Raman for not doing more to implement the city's anti-camping law. Weaver also argued that Raman has not been as supportive as she could be for LAPD officers.

Among his priorities, Weaver said he will look to further fund and support the LAPD and address public safety concerns such as cracking down on smash-and-grabs, fentanyl dealing and consumer fraud. He said he will also stand by small businesses by investing in entrepreneurship and removing red tape, according to his website.

Baronian shares Weaver's concerns about public safety. Additionally, through his neighborhood council, he has created transportation-mobility plans to improve streets and sidewalks, as well as programs that would improve parks and recreation, such as outdoor libraries, community gardens and sports courts.

Vote centers will open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and on Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. The nearest official drop box or vote center can be found at locator.lavote.gov.

City News Service