Evening Briefing: May 11, 2026

Good evening! We’re wrapping up the day for you with the most important stories you need to know and your weather outlook.

Your Weather Planner

The strong ridge will slowly weaken, allowing cooler air to develop and bring temperatures down.

There will be a fair amount of clouds to start for the coast in the morning.

The week remains dry, and temperatures will be closer to normal by Friday.

Tomorrow’s Highs

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Today’s Big Stories

1. LA mayoral debate scheduled for Wednesday canceled after Bass withdraws

A Los Angeles mayoral candidate forum scheduled for broadcast Wednesday on Fox11 was officially canceled Monday after two of the five participants decided to withdraw from the event.

The League of Women Voters and the Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs, organizers of the forum, said they regretted having to announce the cancellation.

“We are very disappointed the forum is not taking place. These forums provide voters with the opportunity to hear candidates share their perspectives, respond to questions and engage with one another on issues facing Los Angeles,” according to a statement from the event organizers.

Five candidates were invited, with only four of them originally committing to participate: incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, City Councilwoman Nithya Raman, businessman Adam Miller and community advocate Rae Huang. Reality TV star Spencer Pratt declined to participate, citing a scheduling conflict.

Over the weekend, Bass announced her decision to withdraw from participating in the forum. Raman also withdrew Monday, explaining that she had agreed to participate in order to debate Bass.

With only two candidates remaining, the event partners agreed not to proceed.

2. Widespread animal abuse alleged in LA’s Skid Row

Two local nonprofits are raising allegations of severe animal abuse in Los Angeles’ Skid Row, and calling on the federal government to intervene due to what they call the inadequate response of local officials.

The legal nonprofit Advancing Law for Animals sent a letter to U.S. officials including Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche last week, alleging mutilation, neglect and illegal breeding, mostly involving dogs.

“On behalf of my client, Starts with One Today, I am writing to inform your offices of ongoing felony animal abuse and other violations of federal law taking place in Central City East, Los Angeles, commonly known as Skid Row. We respectfully request that you take swift and decisive action to enforce the law where local officials have refused in order to combat animal cruelty and other criminal and violent activity,” the letter states.

In addition to Blanche, the letter was also sent to FBI Director Kash Patel, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

3. California ethnic studies mandate stalled

Ethnic studies is a course that focuses on the histories, struggles and contributions of marginalized communities in American society.

California became a leader in this effort, passing a law in 2021 requiring ethnic studies as a graduation requirement starting with the class of 2030.

Beginning this past fall, ethnic studies was supposed to be offered at all California high schools, but because full funding hasn’t been allocated, the statewide mandate has stalled.

In 2021 Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that mandated this requirement saying at the time, “Ethnic studies courses enable students to learn their own stories, and those of their classmates, and a number of studies have shown that these courses boost student achievement over the long run – especially among students of color.”

But the bill made the requirement contingent on state funding.

It had been estimated to cost the state approximately $276 million a year, but the state has yet to fully fund the requirement, stalling the mandate.