LA Mayor Bass' former rival reveals why he is opposed to a recall camp

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Former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso is not backing the recall effort against Democratic Mayor Karen Bass, his former opponent.

“A mayoral recall right now is not a good idea. This is a time when Los Angeles needs unity, not costly and expensive political distractions,” he posted on X earlier this week.

“We must rebuild our communities, get people back into their homes, and open businesses that have been closed or lost. That must be our total focus. There is a time and place for politics, but it is not now.”

The effort to remove Karen Bass from office kicked off after intense criticism of her response to the fires that destroyed thousands of homes and businesses in the Pacific Palisades, including from Caruso, a Democrat.

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Los Angeles mayoral candidate Rick Caruso rallies a crowd at his election-night headquarters Nov. 8 in Los Angeles. (AP/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

Bass was in Ghana when the fires began despite a prior weather warning, for which she has since expressed remorse. But she has stopped short of stepping down. She also recently sacked the city’s fire chief, Kristin Crowley, who failed to get her job back after appealing.

Caruso, a real estate mogul, ran against Bass in 2022 and lost, and it’s unclear if he plans to run against her again in 2026.

His decision not to support the recall caught the attention of former Robert F. Kennedy Jr. vice presidential pick Nicole Shanahan, a major supporter of the recall.

“Don’t people deserve accountability?!” she said in reply to his post on X. “I don’t see this as political division… I see this as LA being the most united I’ve ever seen it around the real cost of mismanagement. The recall team is [100%] bi-partisan.”

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