Karen Bass | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Official portrait, 2022 | |
| 43rdMayor of Los Angeles | |
| Assumed office December 12, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Eric Garcetti |
| 26thChair of the Congressional Black Caucus | |
| In office January 3, 2019 – January 3, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Cedric Richmond |
| Succeeded by | Joyce Beatty |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia | |
| In office January 3, 2011 – December 9, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Diane Watson |
| Succeeded by | Sydney Kamlager-Dove |
| Constituency | 33rd district(2011–2013) 37th district(2013–2022) |
| 67thSpeaker of the California State Assembly | |
| In office May 13, 2008 – March 1, 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Fabian Núñez |
| Succeeded by | John Pérez |
| Majority Leader of the California Assembly | |
| In office December 4, 2006 – May 13, 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Dario Frommer |
| Succeeded by | Alberto Torrico |
| Member of theCalifornia State Assembly from the47th district | |
| In office December 6, 2004 – November 30, 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Herb Wesson |
| Succeeded by | Holly Mitchell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Karen Ruth Bass (1953-10-03)October 3, 1953 (age 71) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 5, including 4 stepchildren |
| Residence | Getty House |
| Education | San Diego State University California State University, Dominguez Hills (BS) University of Southern California (MSW) |
Karen Ruth Bass (/ˈbæs/; born October 3, 1953) is an American politician who has served as the 43rdmayor of Los Angeles since 2022. A member of theDemocratic Party, Bass previously served in theU.S. House of Representatives from 2011 to 2022 and in theCalifornia State Assembly from 2004 to 2010, serving asspeaker during her final Assembly term.
After attendingSan Diego State University andCalifornia State University, Dominguez Hills, Bass worked as aphysician assistant andcommunity organizer, before being elected to representCalifornia's 47th State Assembly district in 2004. In 2008, she was elected to serve as the 67th speaker of the California State Assembly, becoming the first African-American woman in United States history to serve as a speaker of a state legislative body.[1][2]
Bass was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in2010. She representedCalifornia's 33rd congressional district during her first term; redistricting moved her to the37th district in 2012. She chaired theCongressional Black Caucus during the116th Congress.[3][4][5] After winning the2022 Los Angeles mayoral election,[6] Bass became the first woman to serve as mayor of Los Angeles.[7]
Bass was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Wilhelmina (née Duckett) and DeWitt Talmadge Bass.[8] Her father was apostal letter carrier and her mother was a homemaker.[9] She was raised in theVenice andFairfax neighborhoods of Los Angeles and graduated fromAlexander Hamilton High School in 1971.[10]
Witnessing thecivil rights movement on television with her father as a child sparked her interest in community activism. While in middle school, Bass began volunteering forRobert Kennedy's presidential campaign.[11] In the mid-1970s she was an organizer for theVenceremos Brigade, a pro-Cuban group that organized trips by Americans to Cuba.[12] She visited Cuba eight times in the 1970s.[12][13]
Bass studied philosophy atSan Diego State University from 1971 to 1973 and graduated from theKeck School of Medicine of USC Physician Assistant Program in 1982. She then earned aBachelor of Science inhealth sciences fromCalifornia State University, Dominguez Hills, in 1990.[14][15]
In the 1980s, she worked as an emergency medicinephysician assistant and a clinical instructor at theKeck School of Medicine of USC Physician Assistant Program.[14][16] In the late 1980s, Bass and other local community organizers founded Community Coalition, a South Los Angeles grassroots organization.[15][17] She also received her master's degree in social work from theUSC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work in 2015.
In 2004, Bass was elected to represent California's47th Assembly district. At her inauguration, she became the only African-American woman serving in the state legislature.[18] She was reelected in 2006 and 2008 before her term limit expired. Bass served the cities and communities ofCulver City,West Los Angeles,Westwood,Cheviot Hills,Leimert Park,Baldwin Hills,View Park-Windsor Hills,Ladera Heights, theCrenshaw District,Little Ethiopia and portions ofKoreatown andSouth Los Angeles.[19]
SpeakerFabian Núñez appointed BassCalifornia State Assembly majority whip for the 2005–06 legislative session and majority floor leader for the 2007–08 legislative session.[1] During her term as majority whip, Bass was vice chair of the Legislative Black Caucus. As vice chair, she commissioned the first ever "State of Black California" report.[20][21]
Núñez termed out of the Assembly at the end of the 2007–08 session, leaving Bass as the next-highest-ranking Democrat in the Assembly. After consolidating the support of a majority of legislators, including some who had previously been planning to run for the speakership themselves, Bass was elected speaker on February 28, 2008, and sworn in on May 13, 2008.[22]
As speaker, Bass promoted numerous laws to improve the state's child welfare system.[23] During her first year, she ushered through expansion of Healthy Families Insurance Coverage to prevent children from going without health insurance and worked to eliminate bureaucratic impediments to the certification of small businesses. She also secured more than $2.3 million to help revitalize the historicVision Theater in Los Angeles and more than $600 million for Los Angeles Unified School District.[24] Bass worked with the governor and initiated the California Commission on the 21st-Century Economy to reform California's tax code. She also fought to repeal theCalifornia Citizens Redistricting Commission.[25]
Bass became speaker during a period of severe economic turmoil.[26] Negotiations over a spending plan to address a multi-billion dollar budget shortfall began the day Bass was sworn in.[26] She was part of the negotiations that resulted in a comprehensive deal to close most of a $42 billion shortfall.[27]
In June 2009, Bass drew criticism from conservative commentators for statements she made during an interview withLos Angeles Times reporterPatt Morrison in response to a question about how conservative talk radio affected the Assembly's efforts to pass a state budget.[28] Referencing the condemnation from conservative talk radio hosts that three Republicans experienced after they voted for a Democrat-sponsored plan to create revenue by raising taxes,[28] Bass described the pressures Republican lawmakers face:
The Republicans were essentially threatened and terrorized against voting for revenue. Now [some] are facing recalls. They operate under a terrorist threat: "You vote for revenue and your career is over." I don't know why we allow that kind of terrorism to exist. I guess it's about free speech, but it's extremely unfair.[29]
Bass,Dave Cogdill,Darrell Steinberg, andMichael Villines received the 2010 Profile in Courage Award for their leadership in the budget negotiations and their efforts to address the severe financial crisis.[27]
In 2010, RepresentativeDiane Watson retired from Congress and encouraged Bass to run for her seat. Bass was ineligible to run for reelection to the State Assembly in 2010 due to California's term limits, so on February 18, 2010, Bass confirmed her candidacy to representCalifornia's 33rd congressional district.[30]
Bass raised $932,281.19 and spent $768,918.65. Her 2010 campaign contributions came from diverse groups, with none donating more than 15% of her total campaign funds. The five major donors to her campaign were labor unions, with $101,950; financial institutions, with $90,350; health professionals, with $87,900; the entertainment industry, with $52,400; and lawyers and law firms, with $48,650.[31]
Bass won the election with over 86% of the vote on November 2, 2010.[32]
Inredistricting following the2010 census, the district was renumbered from33rd to37th. In 2012 she had no primary opponent and won the general election with 86% of the vote.[9] She raised $692,988.53 and spent $803,966.15, leaving $52,384.92 on hand and a debt of $3,297.59.[31]
Bass was involved in PresidentBarack Obama's reelection campaign. She played a leadership role in the California African Americans for Obama organization and served on Obama's national African American Leadership Council. Bass had also served as a co-chair of African Americans for Obama in California during the2008 presidential campaign.[33]
Bass was reelected to a third term with 84.3% of the vote.[34]
Bass was reelected to a fourth term with 81.1% of the vote.[34] She endorsedHillary Clinton for president in 2015. On August 3, 2016, Bass launched a petition to have then-candidateDonald Trump psychologically evaluated, suggesting that he exhibited symptoms ofnarcissistic personality disorder (NPD). The petition was signed by 37,218 supporters.[35] She did not attend PresidentTrump's inauguration after conducting a poll on Twitter.[36]
Fueled by Trump's election and to channel Angelenos' political frustrations, Bass created the Sea Change Leadership PAC to activate, educate, and mobilize voters. She won her primary with 89.18% of the vote and was reelected to a fifth term with 88.2% of the vote.[34]
After the2018 elections, Democrats regained the majority in the House of Representatives. RepresentativeSeth Moulton and others who felt the current leadership was "too old" gathered signatures to replaceNancy Pelosi as the Democrats' leader. Bass was their first choice for leader,[37][38] but she rejected the offer, supporting Pelosi for speaker.[37] On November 28, 2018, Pelosi won the speakership on a 203-to-32 vote.[38]
Bass served as the second vice chair of the Congressional Black Caucus during the 115th Congress. She was elected chair of the Congressional Black Caucus on November 28, 2018,[47] and served in that capacity from 2019 to 2021.[40]
In July 2020, Bass was discussed as apotential running mate for presumptive Democratic presidential nomineeJoe Biden.[37][48][49] Biden reportedly narrowed the field of possible vice presidential selections to a few women, and Bass "gained real traction in the late stage of the search".[49]Politico called Bass "a bridge-building politician who can draw accolades and concessions from both sides of the aisle".[50]
During this time, a video emerged of Bass speaking at the 2010 opening of a Scientology establishment in Los Angeles outside her district. Bass gave a speech praising theChurch of Scientology for what she described as fighting against inequality, singling out the words of founderL. Ron Hubbard "that all people of whatever race, color or creed are created with equal rights."[51][52] In 2020, Bass defended her past remarks, tweeting that she had addressed "a group of people with beliefs very different than my own" and "spoke briefly about things I think most of us agree with".[53][54] In addition, Bass tweeted that "[s]ince then, published first-hand accounts in books, interviews and documentaries have exposed [the Church of Scientology]."[54]
Bass was also criticized for a statement she had made in 2016 on the death of Cuban leaderFidel Castro, which she called a "great loss to the people of Cuba".[55] Bass said she had been trying to express her condolences to the Cuban population,[55] but added that "it's certainly something that I would not say again".[56]
When Biden choseKamala Harris as his running mate, Bass tweeted, "@KamalaHarris is a great choice for Vice President. Her tenacious pursuit of justice and relentless advocacy for the people is what is needed right now."[57]
In November 2020, Biden considered Bass forSecretary of Housing and Urban Development andSecretary of Health and Human Services.[58] Ultimately, Biden nominated Ohio RepresentativeMarcia Fudge andCalifornia Attorney GeneralXavier Becerra to the posts, respectively.[59]
On September 27, 2021, Bass announced her candidacy formayor of Los Angeles in the 2022 election.[40][60] Her campaign focused on addressing causes of Los Angeles'shomelessness problem and endinghomeless encampments around elementary schools and public parks and beaches. During her mayoral campaign, Bass said that she supported more housing in Los Angeles, but opposed changingzoning regulations so that denser housing would be allowed in neighborhoods that mandatesingle-family housing. At the time, three-quarters of all residentially zoned land in Los Angeles was exclusively zoned for single-family housing.[61]
Bass was the top vote earner in the June 7 primary and facedRick Caruso in the November runoff,[62] with the Associated Press declaring her the mayor-elect on November 16.[63]
Bass was officially sworn in by theLos Angeles City Clerk on December 10, 2022, succeedingEric Garcetti. The following day, she was ceremonially sworn in by Vice PresidentKamala Harris at a public inauguration event.[6] She officially assumed office on December 12.[6] Bass is the first woman and the second Black person, afterTom Bradley, to serve as mayor of Los Angeles.[64][63]
Fulfilling a campaign promise, Bass declared a city state of emergency on homelessness as her first act as mayor.[65] By the end of her first year in office, the Bass Administration reported that over 21,000 homeless people had been moved indoors.[66]
In June 2023, Bass signed an order to speed up processing for affordable housing developments in Los Angeles. Later that year, she introduced a change to the order that made affordable housing projects in single-family neighborhoods ineligible for fast-tracking. By one estimate, this reversal put 1,443 potential units of low-income housing in legal limbo.[67] In July 2024, she imposed further restrictions on affordable housing, making them ineligible for fast-tracking in "historic districts" and on lots that already have rent-controlled apartments.[68]
In September 2023, Bass expressed support for tearing down theMarina Freeway and replacing it with housing,[69] but she had reversed her support by October 2023 and expressed opposition to tearing down the freeway.[70]
In July 2024, advocates for low-income housing sued the city of Los Angeles for blocking the construction of 140 units of affordable housing in Venice. The housing advocates faulted Bass for allowing local officials to block the housing rather than direct city officials to advance the project.[71] One of Bass's former staffers said that superiors directed them to stop advancing this project through the city's bureaucracy.[72] TheLos Angeles Times editorial board criticized Bass for her role in blocking the housing development.[73]
At the start of theJanuary 2025 Southern California wildfires, Bass was attending the inauguration ofJohn Mahama as president inGhana, despite promising not to travel abroad during her term as mayor.[74] She returned to Los Angeles by United States military transport.[75] Prior to Bass's departure for Ghana, theNational Weather Service issued warnings of "extreme fire weather conditions" and an impending windstorm. When thePalisades Fire first began to erupt, Bass was attending a cocktail party at an embassy, where she posed for photos.[76][77] Bass's trip led to substantial criticism from across the political spectrum as a sign that she underestimated the risk of wildfires.[78][79] Developer and former mayoral candidateRick Caruso, whose daughter lost her home to the Palisades Fire, made repeated television appearances condemning the lack of fire preparation by the city and stating thatPacific Palisades fire hydrants did not have enough water.[80][81]
Los Angeles Times ownerPatrick Soon-Shiong andLos Angeles Fire Department ChiefKristin Crowley criticized Bass for cutting $17.6 million from the annual budget to the fire department. Soon-Shiong noted that severe fire hazard conditions had been known well in advance and that fire hydrants in Pacific Palisades lacked pressure. Crowley warned in December 2024 that the $17.6 million budget reduction approved by Bass had reduced the department's emergency response capabilities against events like wildfires, highlighting a reduction from the department's overtime budget. The $17.6 million budget cut came after Bass had initially proposed a $23 million cut from the fire department's budget.[82][83][84] After the cuts made in the annual budget from June 2024, $53 million was later approved by the city for pay raises for firefighters and another $58 million was approved for new firetrucks and equipment in November.[84][85] After initially declining to respond to criticism,[86] Bass stated on January 9 that "there were no reductions that were made that would have impacted the situation" before refusing to answer further questions about the topic.[87]
On February 21, 2025, Bass fired Crowley as Fire Chief, claiming that Crowley had left the department unprepared in advance of the outbreak of the Palisades Fire.[88] She claimed that she was only in Ghana because Crowley failed to warn her about the fire danger, something Crowley has pushed back on.[89] The decision to fire Crowley was criticized by many,[90] including Caruso,[91][92] who alongside various media outlets linked the firing to Crowley speaking out about fire department budget cuts.[93][94][95]
In 2018, the Los Angeles Stonewall Democratic Club named Bass its Public Official of the Year.[96] In 2019, she voted in favor of the Equality Act, which would ban discrimination against LGBTQ people in housing, employment, education, credit and financing, and more.[8]
Bass voted for thefirst andsecond impeachments ofDonald Trump.[97][98]
Upon arriving in Congress, Bass founded the Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth (CCFY), a bipartisan group of members of Congress that develops policy recommendations to strengthen the child welfare system. One of the group's most significant achievements was the passage of the Family First Prevention Services Act, also known as Family First, which was signed into law as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act on February 9, 2018. This reform aims to change child welfare systems across the country by addressing the top reasons children are removed from their homes and placed in foster care.[99]
Starting in May 2012, the Caucus began hosting an annual Foster Youth Shadow Day, during which foster youth come to Washington, DC, for a week to learn about advocating for reforms to the child welfare system. The week culminates in Shadow Day, when participants spend a day following their members of Congress through their daily routine.[100] Bass serves on the organization's board of directors.
Bass believes that the criminal justice system is broken in part due to the disproportionateincarceration rates of poor people of color. Bass has long called for criminal justice reform and to pay special attention to the way the criminal justice system treats women: how they originally entered the system, how they are treated in prison, and what happens to them after they are released. Bass previously served as Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.[101]
In 2018, she voted in favor of theFirst Step Act, which focused on rehabilitating people in prison by incentivizing them with the possibility of an earlier release. Her contribution to the bill was a section addressing what she considers the inhumane practice of shackling women during pregnancy, labor, and delivery.[102]
Bass has expressed support for defense aid toIsrael throughout her career. Despite this, Bass was one of more than 115 House Democrats to sign a letter in 2020 criticizing Israel's plan toannex parts ofPalestinian territory in the occupiedWest Bank.[103] In 2023, she voiced support for Israel during theGaza war.[104]
During theSecond Nagorno-Karabakh War, Bass condemned the military offensive launched by Azerbaijani and Turkish-backedforces onArtsakh.[105] In response to the2022 blockade of the Republic of Artsakh, Bass expressed support for providing direct humanitarian assistance to Artsakh, facilitating negotiations betweenBaku andStepanakert to guarantee the rights and security of Artsakh's Armenian population, and replacingRussian troops in Artsakh with international peacekeepers.[106][107]
In 2019, Bass introduced two pieces of legislation to address student loan debt. The Student Loan Fairness Act of 2019 addresses this crisis in three major ways: creating a new "10-10" standard, capping the interest rate, and accounting for the cost of living. WithDanny Davis, she also introduced the Financial Aid Fairness for Students (FAFSA) Act,[108] which would repeal a law that makes it all but impossible for people with a drug conviction to receive federal financial aid for higher education.
After themurder of George Floyd and massive nationwide protests, Bass and RepresentativeJerry Nadler co-authored theGeorge Floyd Justice in Policing Act of 2020, aimed at restraining police practices such as chokeholds, carotid holds, and no-knock warrants,[109] and making it easier to prosecute police if they break the law.[110][111][109]
The bill passed the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives on a mostly party-line vote of 220–212,[112] but not the evenly divided Senate amid opposition fromRepublicans.[113][114] Negotiations between Republican and Democratic senators on a reform bill collapsed in September 2021.[114]
From 1980 to 1986, Bass was married to Jesus Lechuga. Following their divorce, Bass and Lechuga jointly raised their daughter and her siblings, Bass's four stepchildren, Scythia, Omar, Yvette, and Ollin.[115] Her daughter, Emilia Bass-Lechuga, and son-in-law, Michael Wright, were killed in a car crash in 2006.[116] Bass worships at a Baptist church.[53][117][52]
On September 9, 2022, Bass's Los Angeles home was burglarized and two firearms were stolen. In a public statement, Bass called the incident "unnerving" and "something that far too many Angelenos have faced." According to Bass, the firearms had been securely stored, and no other valuables were taken from her home.[118] As of September 14, two suspects in the criminal investigation were detained at theLAPD Valley Jail awaiting trial on residential burglary charges.[119] In an interview, Bass said the incident "shattered" her sense of safety within Los Angeles.[120]
On April 21, 2024, a person broke a window and entered theGetty House, where Bass lived as Mayor of Los Angeles. She and her family were reportedly unharmed, and the suspect was apprehended.[121][122]
... humanities magnet from which she graduated in 1971.
In the days after the 2018 midterm elections, a small group of dissatisfied House Democrats searched for a challenger to the party's leader, Nancy Pelosi. They were seeking someone to run for speaker who was well-regarded by the Congressional Black Caucus, among centrists, and within progressive circles, according to people familiar with the effort. Their first choice was a legislator from Mrs. Pelosi's home state: Rep. Karen Bass.
Rep. Nancy Pelosi's opponents knew they had an opportunity. But what they really needed was an alternative. This past summer, they thought they had identified the perfect candidate to replace Pelosi (D-Calif.) as the party's House leader: Rep. Karen Bass, a respected Californian who once served as speaker of the state Assembly.
After George Floyd's killing by police, she led Democratic efforts on legislation to overhaul law enforcement, a push that prompted Biden's team to take her more seriously as a potential running mate.
Ten years ago, I attended a new building opening in my district and spoke to what I think all of us believe in — respect for one another's views, to treat all people with respect, and to fight against oppression wherever we find it.
Rep. Karen Bass, a top-tier contender to be Joe Biden's running mate, on Saturday sought to clarify remarks she made in 2010 praising the Church of Scientology...Bass's record has increasingly come under scrutiny as she has moved toward the top of presumptive Democratic nominee Biden's vice presidential shortlist after lobbying by fellow House Democrats.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)Congresswoman Karen Bass is pushing for law enforcement accountability at a federal level, and she credits demonstrators for prompting lawmakers to take action... The Congressional Black Caucus chair co-introduced the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. Among other things, it would ban chokeholds, carotid holds, and no-knock warrants at a federal level. The bipartisan vote was 236–181 to approve the measure, the most sweeping federal intervention into law enforcement in years.
Democrats' legislation, spearheaded by Representative Karen Bass of California, the chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, included several measures that civil rights activists have been pushing for decades, such as amending the federal criminal code to make it easier to prosecute police officers for misconduct by lowering the standard that prosecutors must meet.
'The Justice in Policing Act establishes a bold, transformative vision of policing in America,' said Representative Karen Bass of California, the chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus. 'Never again should the world be subjected to witnessing what we saw on the streets in Minneapolis, the slow murder of an individual by a uniformed police officer.'
| California Assembly | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member of theCalifornia Assembly from the47th district 2004–2010 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Majority Leader of theCalifornia State Assembly 2006 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Speaker of the California State Assembly 2008–2010 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Mayor of Los Angeles 2022–present | Incumbent |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia's 33rd congressional district 2011–2013 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromCalifornia's 37th congressional district 2013–2022 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theCongressional Black Caucus 2019–2021 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former US Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former US Representative | Succeeded byas Former US Representative |
