Los Angeles’ progressive movement is showing fresh cracks, with a split happening in the middle of the city’s high-stakes mayoral race.
Two more members of City Hall’s left-wing bloc — Eunisses Hernandez and Ysabel Jurado — told The Times on Tuesday they’re backing Mayor Karen Bass for reelection over fellow progressive challenger Nithya Raman, delivering a potentially painful blow to Raman’s support on the left.
The endorsements from Hernandez and Jurado join fellow DSA-backed Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez in backing Bass — leaving Nithya Raman isolated as her fellow Democratic Socialists of America allies rally behind the mayor.
The Democratic Socialists of America candidates have previously aligned on contentious votes involving police spending, homelessness policy and anti-encampment measures.
Soto-Martínez became the first member of the DSA council bloc to publicly keep his allegiance with Bass, announcing his endorsement in early February.
The move also comes as Raman has attempted to expand her appeal beyond her traditional progressive base.
During the campaign, she has staked out positions that differ from some of her earlier stances, including supporting current LAPD staffing levels and signaling she would not block council members from establishing anti-encampment zones in their own districts.
Longtime political consultant Michael Trujillo told The Post on Tuesday that the endorsements from the three DSA council members send a larger political message about Raman’s standing within her own ideological base.
“These endorsements suggest they don’t believe Nithya Raman has the chops to run the city,” Trujillo said. “The four DSA council districts all touch each other geographically. This is the movement’s base in Los Angeles, and for them to tell supporters to stay with Bass matters.”
Trujillo argued that losing support within that core bloc would be difficult to overcome elsewhere in the city.
“Every vote matters, and losing votes in your base is especially hard to make up somewhere else,” he said. “If Nithya had stronger relationships with her colleagues and was more in touch with them politically, you would expect them to be endorsing her.”
Polls show Bass still leading as the runoff approaches, now just two weeks away, while Pratt has made the biggest gains in recent surveys and remains within striking distance of Raman.
The Post reached out to Raman’s campaign for comment.
