Xavier Becerra stood right next to Karen Bass at a Los Angeles campaign event on Monday and still wouldn't say he's voting for her. The moment, captured as the two appeared together just a day before Election Day, has drawn attention for what Becerra didn't say as much as for what he did.
According to Politico, Bass was quick to publicize the joint appearance with Becerra in Los Angeles on Monday, but he never actually endorsed her. Instead, Becerra stopped short of an endorsement. His campaign went further in declining to clarify matters, telling Politico it would not say which mayoral candidate is getting his vote.
Bass, for her part, had no hesitation about where she stood on Becerra's own race. She called him “the next governor of California,” a line Politico captured at the same event and one that ABC7 also noted from the Monday campaign stop. The appearance drew attention because Becerra did not endorse Bass while standing alongside her.
A Tight Race That Explains the Hesitation
The hedge lands at a tense moment for Bass, who according to the New York Post is facing a close reelection contest against city councilwoman Nithya Raman. Yahoo News reported that the Democrats arrived together at Homegirl Cafe at 8 a.m. on Monday, and the same report noted a Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times poll showing Bass and Raman deadlocked at 40% each, with 19% of voters still undecided. A separate October poll from California Post/McLaughlin & Associates, also cited by Yahoo News, had Raman ahead of Bass 46.7% to 38.8%, with 13.5% undecided — a conflicting snapshot that underscores just how unsettled the contest remains.
Politico described the Bass-Raman matchup as a toss-up overall and said Latino voters could be the deciding factor. That framing lines up with numbers from ABC7, which found 34% of Latino voters still undecided in a Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times poll, with Raman at 45% and Bass at 21% among those who had made up their minds. By Election Day, ABC7's live coverage described Bass and Raman as running neck-and-neck among likely voters, with Los Angeles County reporting more than 1.2 million vote-by-mail ballots and over 156,000 vote-center votes already logged, turnout running ahead of the same point in the 2022 midterms.
Homelessness Dominates the Pitch to Voters
Much of the campaign argument has centered on the city's encampments. Bass has stressed that her administration cleared dozens of encampments and brought thousands of people into shelter, according to ABC News, which also reported she has pledged to rebuild the police force to 9,500 officers by the 2028 Olympics. Raman has countered with her own target, pledging to reduce the number of people sleeping in tents and encampments by at least 50% by 2028, the same report noted.
The same ABC News account, drawing on a Berkeley IGS/LA Times poll conducted October 19-25, found that about four in 10 likely voters ranked reducing homeless encampments as a top priority, while roughly three in 10 prioritized public safety or affordable housing. The report framed the choice facing voters simply: whether to stick with Bass or turn to the city council member challenging her.
Becerra's Own Race Looks Far Less Close
Becerra's reluctance to back Bass stands in contrast to how comfortable his own standing appears against Republican Steve Hilton in the governor's race. A recent Berkeley IGS poll put him ahead by 27 points, 61% to 34%, Yahoo News reported, after serving as health secretary. At Monday's event, Bass was already referring to him as California's next governor, according to ABC7's live updates.
The Becerra-Bass appearance came during the campaign's final stretch.
