California gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra appeared reluctant to endorse Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, despite standing right beside her, when a local reporter repeatedly pressed him on why Angelenos should vote to reelect her.
In a clip aired by NBC4, Becerra was asked why voters should support Bass, who today is facing a tight reelection battle against City Councilwoman Nithya Raman.
To that, Becerra simply encouraged people to head to the polls.
“Well I hope people just go out and vote, that’s the most important thing,” Becerra said.
The reporter then pressed him again, pointing out that Bass was standing alongside him rather than Raman.
“But again the mayor is standing with you, the mayor is standing with you right now, why should Angelenos vote for the mayor? She’s standing with you, not Nithya Raman, this is a unified force,” the reporter said.
Becerra again stopped short of explicitly endorsing Bass, instead pointing to their longtime friendship.
“Well, Karen Bass and I go way way back. We have known each other for a long long time and we served together in Congress,” Becerra said.
“You know politics is one thing, friendships are another thing and I hope folks recognize that you can have friendships that far exceed whatever goes on in politics.”
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The awkward exchange comes as Bass and Raman are locked in a close contest today for Los Angeles mayor.
An Oct. 28 Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times poll found the two candidates tied at 40% support each, with 19% of likely voters undecided. The results marked a significant turnaround for Bass after a September poll showed Raman leading by 11 percentage points.
Bass has campaigned on continuing her administration’s efforts to address homelessness, expand affordable housing and improve public safety, pointing to her Inside Safe initiative, which moves people out of homeless encampments and into temporary housing.
Raman, meanwhile, has promised a more aggressive approach to the city’s homelessness crisis, pledging to reduce the number of tents and encampments on Los Angeles streets by at least 50% before the 2028 Olympics.
She has also emphasized housing affordability, tenant protections and greater accountability for city spending.
The exchange also drew a mocking response from former mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt, who criticized Becerra for declining to offer an explicit endorsement.
“This is hilariously awkward. Xavier Basura is standing next to Karen Basura and refuses to endorse her, even after being pressed multiple times. He can’t even look at anyone. LMAO That’s your sister from another mister, Xavier!” Pratt wrote.
Becerra, a former California attorney general and U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services, is facing Republican Steve Hilton in the race for California governor and has maintained a substantial lead in recent polls.
An Oct. 31 ActiVote survey of 400 likely voters found Becerra with 63.2% support compared with Hilton’s 36.8%, a lead of more than 26 percentage points. The survey had a margin of error of 4.9 percentage points.
