LOS ANGELES, CA – A national committee of the Democratic Socialists of America on Monday again delayed a vote on whether to uphold or rescind the Los Angeles chapter’s endorsement of City Councilmember Nithya Raman for mayor, one week before the Nov. 3 general election, according to a DSA spokesperson.
The organization’s National Political Committee met Monday, Oct. 26, after meeting the previous week. It voted to work with the local chapter, DSA-LA, to organize an Oct. 31 meeting with Raman to assess her position on the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel, known as BDS, and on other issues related to the Gaza conflict.
Raman is one of two candidates for mayor on the City Clerk’s certified candidate list for the general election, along with Mayor Karen Bass.
The review is separate from the election itself. DSA-LA members voted 937 to 484 in September to endorse Raman.
Committee sets Oct. 31 meeting with Raman
The committee did not vote Monday on rescinding the endorsement. Instead, it decided to hold the meeting with Raman first and to judge her answers afterward.
If Raman does not provide “clear and unequivocal commitments” to the committee’s questions, the national committee will vote on whether to rescind DSA-LA’s endorsement, a DSA spokesperson confirmed.
The meeting is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 31, three days before Election Day. The committee has not announced when it would hold a vote if the meeting does not produce the commitments it is seeking.
Review began over R22 resolution
The national committee began its review of the endorsement after some DSA members pointed out that Raman had not been asked about “R22.” That is a DSA resolution requiring local chapters to ask candidates about their support for BDS before the chapters endorse them.
DSA-LA’s co-chairs, Leslie Chang and Sean Wakasa, acknowledged in an email to members that the chapter left a BDS question off its candidate questionnaire. They called it “an oversight.”
The co-chairs also said the chapter did ask about Palestine, both on the questionnaire and in a candidate interview.
LAX weapons shipments and Jan. 1 deadline
The committee’s demands extend beyond the campaign. If Raman wins the Nov. 3 election, the group also wants a commitment from her to oppose weapons being shipped to Israel out of Los Angeles International Airport.
The committee approved a resolution setting a Jan. 1 deadline. If Raman has not expressed support for BDS and condemned weapon shipments out of LAX by then, the committee will compile documentation of what the resolution describes as a fair and ample opportunity for education about the Palestinian struggle for liberation.
That documentation would be used to begin a disciplinary process under R22. The committee would then schedule a vote on expelling Raman from the organization.
The research for this report found no official city or Los Angeles World Airports page on weapons shipments tied to this dispute.
Raman campaign sends statement to DSA
Raman’s campaign sent DSA a statement Monday, during the national committee’s meeting, that outlined her stance on BDS. “I believe the best way for working Angelenos to stand in solidarity with Gaza is through non-violent protest, legislative action, and diplomatic pressure, including BDS,” the statement said.
The campaign declined to say whether Raman personally supports BDS. It pointed instead to the statement and to other remarks she has made publicly.
Raman has said she does not plan to make BDS part of her mayoral platform.
Local members split over the review
Some DSA-LA members have criticized the national committee’s move. Clayton Ryles, a DSA-LA member who sits on the 27-person national committee, called the review unnecessary after Monday’s meeting. He said he was encouraged that Raman had expressed support for Palestine and the group’s priorities, and that he believes she complies with R22.
Ryles said not everyone on the committee agrees with that view. He is one of a few DSA-LA members on the panel and plans to vote against rescinding the endorsement. He also supported the endorsement as a member of the local chapter.
Rescinding it would override a vote taken by the local chapter’s membership. The chapter’s September tally was 937 in favor and 484 opposed.
Gaza has been an issue in the race
Gaza and BDS have come up in the campaign before the DSA review. At a Sept. 29 community forum hosted by the Jewish Federation at the Skirball Cultural Center, Raman called BDS “a legitimate form of peaceful protest,” according to accounts of the event. The remark drew boos from the audience. She also defended using the word genocide to describe Israel’s actions in Gaza, citing other experts.
Bass rejected the term at the same forum. She said her focus on foreign conflicts is how they affect the city of Los Angeles, and she said she would oppose sanctions efforts against Israel, according to accounts of the event.
At the city level, Council File 24-0656, a Gaza ceasefire resolution, was introduced by Councilmembers Eunisses Hernandez and Raman, with Hugo Soto-Martínez as the second. The file was referred to the Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee on June 4, 2024.
The file expired under Council policy on June 4, 2026, and the City Clerk’s record shows no council votes on it.
Election calendar for the Nov. 3 vote
The general municipal election on Tuesday, Nov. 3, includes the races for mayor, city attorney, controller and eight City Council districts, according to the City Clerk’s candidate information for 2026. The same document lists Oct. 5 as the first day to apply for and vote a vote-by-mail ballot, and Oct. 19 as the last day to register to receive one.
The mayor’s term begins Dec. 14, 2026, according to the City Clerk’s election documents. That date falls before the Jan. 1 deadline the DSA committee set for Raman.
The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s page for the Nov. 3, 2026, general election lists the candidate handbook, calendar of events, recount schedule and measures on the ballot.
Vote centers and ballot returns
Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean C. Logan announced in a news release that 123 vote centers would open Saturday, Oct. 24. They are open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. for in-person voting, voter registration and vote-by-mail ballot returns.
Another 523 vote centers open Oct. 31, for a countywide total of 646. Unregistered voters can complete a conditional voter registration at a vote center, according to the release.
Los Angeles County said in an Oct. 16 notice that voters who missed the Oct. 19 registration deadline can still vote at any vote center. On Election Day, vote centers and ballot drop boxes operate from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The county began mailing ballots to all registered voters on Oct. 1. In its announcement, the county advised that voters “should return ballots early, at least seven (7) days before Election Day to ensure timely delivery.” It said ballots can be dropped off at more than 400 locations or at vote centers beginning Oct. 24.
Decision on endorsement awaits Oct. 31 meeting
The national committee’s vote on whether to rescind DSA-LA’s endorsement of Raman remains pending until after the Oct. 31 meeting. The committee’s Jan. 1 deadline for her to express support for BDS and condemn weapons shipments out of LAX, and the possible disciplinary process that would follow, extend beyond the Nov. 3 election.
The election itself will be decided by voters under the county’s procedures, and the outcome does not depend on DSA’s internal decision.
