Nithya Raman claimed she went into a “fugue state” and did not remember her Los Angeles mayoral debate with Karen Bass.
The challenger made the remark in a bizarre interview with NBC4 just moments after leaving the stage in Universal City on Tuesday night.
According to the National Institutes of Health, a fugue state “is one of the rare psychiatric disorders characterized by sudden unexpected travelling from one’s customary place of living or work.”
The NIH website adds: “Traumatic circumstances, leading to an altered state of consciousness dominated by a wish to flee, are thought to be the underlying cause.”
NBC’s Robert Kovacik opened his post-debate interview with Raman asking: “Let’s go through the debate. Here’s your moment, your strongest tonight and your weakest moment tonight.”
She replied: “Oh, you know, to be honest with you, I’m so sorry but I was in fugue state and I don’t remember very much of it at all.”
An account called No Show Nithya seized on the response, suggesting Raman could struggle under pressure.
It posted: “Ah yes, exactly what we need, a mayoral candidate who blacks out when she gets stressed. That’ll go really well.”
Other users turned their criticism toward Bass, defending Raman for taking questions after the debate.
“No one blanks out when stressed better than Karen Bass does. At least Nithya took questions after the debate. Karen had to run and hide as usual,” one X user wrote.
It is not clear if Raman has ever been diagnosed with suffering the condition or if her comments to Kovacik were flippant.
The post-debate exchange followed a tense confrontation between the former political allies, who traded sharp attacks with just three weeks remaining in the LA mayoral race.
Raman accused Bass of presiding over worsening homelessness, struggling businesses and wasted taxpayer dollars.
“We cannot afford another four years of decline, of mismanagement of excuses. homelessness is rising despite hundreds of millions of dollars spent. storefronts are closing. Our tax money is being wasted, and through it all, we’ve had a mayor who has been MIA,” said Raman.
Bass countered by questioning Raman’s leadership and ability to prepare Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics.
“We are 640 days away from the greatest sporting event in U.S. history, and I believe that the city would be destabilized with someone who has extreme views and basically has not been able to build relationships, not on city council and not with her constituents. Now is not the time to turn the city over to Nithya Raman,” said Bass.
Bass has never lost an election during a political career spanning Sacramento, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.
Raman, once a Bass ally, upended the race in February when she announced her bid to unseat the mayor and entered the primary field.
