Los Angeles City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson has sharply criticized mayoral hopeful Nithya Raman, stating she has reached the “bottom of the barrel politically” after her removal from her position as chair of the Housing and Homelessness Committee. Harris-Dawson characterized Raman's response to losing the influential post as an act of political desperation.
Raman was removed from her role overseeing the city’s homeless crisis on Monday, following what reports describe as a series of “botched initiatives.” The California Post was the first to report on the removal.
Harris-Dawson stated that the decision was made to ensure the council's functionality and to address key questions regarding homelessness before the upcoming election. He told NBC Los Angeles that the change was not a punishment but a move to improve the council's capacity to respond to the ongoing homelessness crisis.
Raman, who is challenging Mayor Karen Bass for the city's top job, has portrayed her removal as a politically motivated attack by Mayor Bass. In a video posted to X, Raman alleged that Bass's "top City Council ally" removed her as committee chair in an attempt to punish her for challenging the mayor, stating that Angelenos would ultimately suffer from these "political games."
Harris-Dawson, a long-time ally and friend of Mayor Bass, countered Raman's claims, telling NBC Los Angeles that discussions about changing the committee's direction had been ongoing for months. He suggested that the committee would be split into two separate committees, one focused on housing and the other on homelessness.
"It was very, very disappointing to see her reach to the bottom of the barrel politically and to use something that she knew would happen," Harris-Dawson said, referencing a past statement where Raman anticipated losing her leadership position. He expressed disappointment that Raman used the event for a campaign commercial, stating he believed she was "above that." Harris-Dawson also noted that if the move were purely political, he could have removed Raman as early as February when she announced her mayoral candidacy.
The Bass campaign also responded to Raman's accusations, criticizing her record on housing and homelessness. Alex Stack, a spokesperson for Bass, stated that Raman "canceled committee meetings for weeks, didn’t show up to votes, and failed to deliver on building more housing or getting people off the streets."