Inside the Shadow Primary to Replace Nithya Raman

HOW DO YOU PREPARE for a special election that may not actually come to pass?

That has been the burning question lately in one of Los Angeles’ wealthiest council districts, as politicos, consultants and activists cast about for candidates aligned with their interests in case the current occupant ascends to higher office. Some of them, of course, are plotting how to capture the seat for themselves. 

When Los Angeles Councilmember Nithya Raman entered the mayoral race at the last minute earlier this year, she scrambled city politics and upended long-standing alliances. But in her home district, her mayoral candidacy also raised the specter of a political vacuum.   

The district, which cuts a craggy horizontal swath across the city, includes Los Feliz, the Hollywood Hills, Sherman Oaks, Encino and parts of Studio City, Van Nuys and Reseda.

If Raman wins the mayoral election, the City Council would likely ask for a special election to fill her term, which runs through 2028. With a recent L.A. Times poll showing Raman in the lead, the maneuvering in Los Feliz coffee shops and Sherman Oaks rec rooms has shifted into overdrive. Phones are ringing, pro-and-con lists are being tallied, and would-be candidates are discreetly putting pieces in place so they can quickly launch a viable campaign if an election is called. 

There is hardly an ambitious politician living within a five-mile radius of the district’s jagged boundaries whose name hasn’t been bandied about as a potential contender. (Council candidates generally must have lived in the district for at least 30 days before candidate filing begins, so contenders outside the boundaries could face a fairly hasty move.)