Nithya Raman, Rae Huang and Adam Miller are all pushing for a more affordable Los Angeles and will face off on the issue in Monday night’s debate

Los Angeles – one of the nation’s most expensive cities – is in the grip of a housing crisis, with an estimated 67,777 people experiencing homelessness in 2025. On Monday evening, three mayoral candidates will take the stage in Downtown Los Angeles to pitch solutions and make their case to voters.

The Housing Action Coalition and Streets for All, two organizations that advocate for housing and transportation policies, will host the first mayoral debate of the year on Monday evening, titled  “Shaping Los Angeles: A Debate About the Future of LA.” During the debate, candidates will discuss what organizers say are top priorities for Los Angeles voters: housing, homelessness and transportation. 

On March 23rd we are co-hosting a debate for candidates running for Mayor with @HACdotorg and want to hear from you! What questions should we should ask the candidates?

Put your suggestions and vote on other people’s ideas here:https://t.co/sgJmQl0gDV pic.twitter.com/X2XOrrH57r

— Streets For All (@streetsforall) March 4, 2026

Confirmed candidates include Nithya Raman, Rae Huang and Adam Miller. Attendance by Mayor Karen Bass and Spencer Pratt is listed as “TBD” and has yet to be confirmed. 

Housing is the centerpiece for all three mayoral campaigns. 4th District Council Member Raman, an urban planner who entered the race in the final hours, currently chairs the city’s Housing and Homelessness committee. Monday, she officially received an endorsement from the nonprofit organization Abundant Housing LA. 

“I’m proud to campaign alongside advocates who are pushing for a more inclusive, sustainable, and abundant city,” Raman wrote on X when making the announcement. 

A recent poll conducted by UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies and co-sponsored by The Los Angeles Times found that Bass currently leads the race with support from 25% of voters polled. However, Raman remained a clear runner-up, with 17% of voter support. 

Huang, a community organizer and minister, serves as deputy director at Housing NOW!, a coalition of more than 150 organizations aiming to make California housing more affordable. According to her campaign website, Huang has led efforts to expand tenant protections and supported the passage of Senate Bill 555, which requires the California Department of Housing and Community Development to complete a California Social Housing Study.

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We stood together early this month with Power LA and Alliance for Housing Justice to protect mixed-status immigrant families in public housing and section 8, but we still need all of you to continue to flood HUD with letters today.

It takes less than 5 minutes. Tell HUD that Los… pic.twitter.com/Qam8nJSGZk

— Rev. Rae Huang (@raeforla) March 16, 2026

“Rae believes Los Angeles can be a model for a city run by its people for its people,” her website reads. “This looks like supporting community-driven solutions and creating infrastructure to support better democracy through co-governance and resident participation.”

She is also running with the promise to create a cleaner city infrastructure, including creating “new green, union jobs” and making buses free.

Tech entrepreneur Miller said that, under his leadership, he believes Los Angeles can become a city where families can thrive, rather than struggle in the face of the rising cost of living. Miller, alongside his wife, created the nonprofit Better Angeles to address homelessness. 

It’s unacceptable that we have 70k people living on our streets, people who are desperately in need. In one of the greatest cities in the country, in the richest state in the U.S., we can and must do better. We can address homelessness with the urgency and care that it deserves. pic.twitter.com/h1kbHpYcDG

— Adam Miller (@AdamMillerLA) March 4, 2026

He said the idea came after he became frustrated in 2020 while volunteering with Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, saying he was dissuaded from improving the agency’s efficiency. 

“Passivity was no longer an option. We had to act. Los Angeles cannot and will not achieve its full potential until we effectively address homelessness,” he wrote in an article published to the nonprofit’s website. 

“Shaping Los Angeles: A Debate About the Future of L.A.” is a free event that has since sold out. It will be held at L.A. Center Studios in Downtown from 5:30 to 7 p.m. and live-streamed on YouTube.