Socialist Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman stepped out of her stunning $1.9 million home Monday – as critics slammed her as a “master manipulator” who’s skilled at dodging questions from the public.
Raman declined to answer a series of questions from The California Post about her stance on a host of issues endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America – of whom the LA City councilwoman is a member – including whether she supports seizing privately owned housing and converting them into homes for the public.
Susan Collins, a former LA City Council candidate, said Raman falsely bills herself as a “pragmatic problem solver when in reality, she’s been anything but.”
“I think she’s a master manipulator,” said Collins. “Even the DSA in itself is manipulative and deceptive.”
Public records show Raman’s three-bedroom, three-bathroom home in trendy Silver Lake was purchased for $1.25 million in 2014 – and is now worth an estimated $1.9 million.
The stately home – which includes sweeping views – seems to fly in the face of DSA beliefs that long-term housing reforms are needed, including moving away from private, commodified housing toward public ownership.
Raman has not publicly endorsed abolishing rent. But critics don’t expect the 44-year-old mom of two to clarify her positions any time soon.
“If we think Karen Bass has sequestered herself from the press and the public, she’s more so,” said LA lawyer Scott Meyers. “She doesn’t submit to questions from the public when she does, she is a master at evasion.”
On Saturday with just hours to spare before the deadline to file for candidacy, Raman announced her surprise run against floundering Mayor Karen Bass, her former ally who endorsed her when she ran for City Council.
Meyers is worried that the DSA could seek to advance its agenda through Raman’s candidacy.
“She’s far more radical than her rhetoric — and her rhetoric is already pretty radical,” Meyers said.
In its so-called “Democratic socialist program for Los Angeles,” the 3,500-member strong DSA vehemently vowed to elect “new socialist leadership” in the county.
“It is our goal as a mass socialist organization to break the power that the status quo coalition has in order to effect material changes for our broad working class in Los Angeles,” the radical group wrote.
“She was really groomed for this,” said Collins, who ran against Raman in 2020. “She checked off all the right boxes — she’s a woman, she’s of color, she’s got an Ivy League education — so she was really a perfect fit for DSA.”
Collins, who moved out of the city after Raman was elected, accused the mayoral hopeful of hiding behind bureaucratic excuses to avoid clearing dangerous encampments — often blaming police for inaction.
Raman was a vocal opponent of the LA ordinance which bans sitting, sleeping or lying on sidewalks in sensitive areas such as within 500 feet of schools and day care centers. She was one of just three council members to vote against the 2022 ban on encampments near schools, arguing the law is ineffective.
DSA’s LA chapter did not respond to The Post’s request for comment on whether it is financially supporting Raman’s campaign or has formally endorsed her.
Raman is not the only DSA member running for mayor.
Rae Huang, a 43-year-old community organizer and democratic socialist, is also waging a long-shot campaign in LA, focusing on policies like free public transit — drawing comparisons of her and Raman to that of New York City’s Zohran Mamdani.
While the chances of a Democratic Socialist candidate unseating the incumbent are low, the prospect of a mayor like Raman has some LA residents, like Meyers, concerned about the city’s future.
“She’s going to further demoralize the police and encourage activists to protest, strike, and create disruption,” he said.
If Raman were to win, she could find herself at odds with her own party ahead of the 2028 Olympics, which would take place during her potential mayoral tenure.
The DSA has publicly opposed the Games through its “NOlympics-LA” campaign, criticizing what it calls “undemocratic greed motivating the bid, City Council, our mayor, and the IOC.”
Their website states, “We challenge their decision to place our already vulnerable communities at higher risk of death, displacement, deportation, and detention.”
