Mayor Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman are stepping out of City Hall and into a neighborhood hot seat Tuesday night, facing off in a focused Sherman Oaks homeowners forum that pulls the mayoral fight directly onto Valley turf as the June primary looms. Homelessness, public safety, and basic city services are set to dominate a rare one-on-one that puts the race’s leading voices under a very local microscope.
Special Sherman Oaks forum
According to the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association, the forum is scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Sherman Oaks East Valley Adult Center, 5056 Van Nuys Blvd., and will be moderated by Phil Shuman. In its flyer, the group explains that it "has chosen to invite these two leaders specifically because they represent Sherman Oaks on two critical — and complementary — levels of government," and promises the evening "will not be a circus‑style debate."
Why the invite list matters
The decision to keep the stage limited to Bass and Raman has already ruffled some political feathers. Other campaigns and local observers have argued the format shuts out voters who want to size up the broader field on the same night. As The Real Deal reported, SOHA leaders have pushed back, saying they aim to grill the two officials who most directly represent Sherman Oaks, not to host a free-for-all.
The televised debate follows on Wednesday
The quiet community center backdrop will give way to TV lights the very next night. A larger, televised debate is set for Wednesday at the Skirball Cultural Center, where NBC4 and Telemundo 52 say only three candidates met their bar of at least 5% in two reliable 2026 polls. NBC4 listed Mayor Bass, Spencer Pratt, and Nithya Raman as the qualifiers, and named Colleen Williams, Conan Nolan, and Enrique Chiabra as moderators for the Skirball event.
Money and momentum
Behind the scenes, the money race is tightening. Campaign finance records filed with the city show Spencer Pratt has raised roughly $540,000 since Jan. 1, Nithya Raman about $530,000 in the same span, and Bass about $495,000, even as she reports nearly $2.3 million in cash on hand. The Los Angeles Times noted those figures and reported that Adam Miller has largely self-funded his bid with a $2.5 million loan.
What to watch Tuesday
Local political watchers will be studying how Bass and Raman talk about Valley priorities and whether the former allies trade jabs or stick to a show of unity. MyNewsLA pointed out that SOHA invited only the two and that several other leading contenders were left off the program, sharpening the spotlight on both women.
Organizers say the Sherman Oaks forum will be streamed and recorded, giving voters who cannot make it to Van Nuys Boulevard a virtual front-row seat, according to the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association. The one-on-one setup may be short on spectacle, but the stakes are real: a few sharp exchanges on homelessness or public safety could nudge voter perceptions in the final month before the primary.
