2022 Los Angeles mayoral election

The following candidates (listed alphabetically) have held office, have been included in polls, or have been the subject of significant media coverage.

Candidate	Experience	Announced	Ref
Mike Feuer	18th Los Angeles City Attorney Member of the California State Assembly from the 42nd district Member of the Los Angeles City Council from the 5th district	March 9, 2020 (Website)	[3][4]

• Eden Cristo, grassroots founder of We Humyns (a group intending to get humans to Mars)[5]
• YJ Draiman, perennial candidate for Mayor of Los Angeles and father of Disturbed lead singer David Draiman[6]
• G. Juan Johnson, legal advocate[7]
• Helan Mahmood, co-founder of fashion brand Don Kaka[8]
• William Rodriguez Morrison, community organizer and perennial candidate[1]
• Alestar Van Mater, real estate agent (party preference: Republican)[9]

• Joe Buscaino, Los Angeles City Councilor, 15th District[10]
• Rick Caruso, mall developer (famous for properties such as The Grove at Farmers Market and The Americana at Brand)[11]
• Philip DeFranco, news commentator and YouTube personality[12]
• Kevin de León, Los Angeles City Councilor, 14th District, former President pro tempore of the California State Senate and 2018 U.S. Senate candidate (party preference: Democratic)[13]
• Wendy Greuel, former Los Angeles City Councilor, City Controller, candidate for Mayor of Los Angeles in 2013[14]
• B.J. Novak, best known as an actor, writer and executive producer for The Office[15]
• Mark Ridley-Thomas, Los Angeles County Supervisor (party preference: Democratic)[16]
• Herb Wesson, former Speaker of the California State Assembly and former President of the Los Angeles City Council; Los Angeles City Councilor, 10th District (party preference: Democratic)

Black Lives Matter has continually brought race relations and police brutality to the forefront of political discussion in Los Angeles. Feuer was caught up in controversy when he was involved in prosecuting Black Lives Matter activists on battery charges that many deemed to be untrue. (In the face of public outcry, Feuer's office dropped the charges.)[17] This attempted prosecution came back into the public eye in 2020, when a Black Lives Matter leader Feuer tried to prosecute—Cal State LA professor Melina Abdullah—announced that she would sue the city over her wrongful arrest.[18]

Feuer's battle with Black Lives Matter occurs amidst an environment in which, critics charge, the city attorney's office has been involved in protecting violent police officers and prosecuting nonviolent African-Americans.[19] His heavy-handed prosecution of Patricia Beers for blocking a sidewalk drew criticism, as did his attempts to block the release of a video depicting the beating of Clinton Alford in South Los Angeles.[20]

Though no current mayoral candidates were involved, the husband of Jackie Lacey pulling a gun on Black Lives Matter protesters drew attention to the controversies surrounding Jackie Lacey.[21][22] Lacey having been endorsed by Feuer, Wesson, and other potential mayoral candidates has been much discussed.[23]

It has been suggested that the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic will play a major role in the election. In early 2020, the disease became the top killer in Los Angeles. Potential frontrunner Feuer was in charge of prosecuting businesses refusing to obey the pandemic "Safer At Home" order, which gained mixed reception from medical professionals and small business owners.[24][25] Caruso, though he has yet to declare a candidacy, gave multiple media statements in regard to recovery after COVID-19 that many believe are a precursor to his mayoral declaration.[26]

The killing of George Floyd led to national and international backlash and protests. Protests swept Los Angeles, with many protesters calling to defund the police or abolish them. The actions of Mayor Eric Garcetti and Chief of Police Michel Moore provoked significant criticism.[27][28] The implementation of a citywide curfew was also hotly debated. Mike Feuer was originally involved in trying to prosecute protesters who violated curfew, but he later dropped this plan.[29][30] Defunding the police or abolishing the LAPD, once a fringe political belief, has now taken center stage thanks to Black Lives Matter protests.[31]

In July 2019, FBI agents raided the offices of Mike Feuer and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. The raid stemmed from the City Attorney's handling of the DWP overbilling scandal that dates back to 2013. There were reports that Feuer's own outside defense counsel recruited a plaintiff to sue the city over the DWP billing errors.[32][33][34]

Rick Caruso is the chairman of the board of trustees at his alma mater, the University of Southern California.[35][36] Olivia Jade Giannulli, one of the USC students involved in the federal indictments regarding USC admissions, was aboard Caruso's $100 million yacht, Invictus,[37] in the Bahamas at the time the scandal broke. Giannulli is daughter of actress Lori Loughlin and a friend of Caruso's daughter, Gianna.[38][39][40][41] Gianna Caruso, like her other siblings, was accepted to USC during a period in which her father donated millions of dollars to the university.[42]

In Spring 2018, Mark Ridley-Thomas's political campaign fund — Mark Ridley-Thomas Committee for a Better L.A. — gave $100,000 to the USC School of Social Work, according to reporting by the Los Angeles Times. "After USC received the money, the school’s dean, Marilyn Flynn, reached out to Peter Manzo, the chief executive of United Ways of California. She told him USC was sending a $100,000 donation to be put in the account of PRPI, the think tank run by [his son and recently resigned Assemblymember] Sebastian Ridley-Thomas." The Times reported that a "concerned employee went to the university’s compliance office in June [2018] and reported “alleged inappropriate financial transactions and agreements” involving [USC Dean of Social Work Marilyn] Flynn and an elected official." After consulting legal counsel, USC administrators subsequently referred the $100,000 donation by Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas to federal authorities for a criminal investigation.[43]

Though neither candidate has officially entered the race, the widespread speculation of their candidacies has brought these USC controversies back into the public eye.

Mike Feuer was among many politicians in the City of Los Angeles who took money from campaign donor Justin Kim.[44] When Kim plead guilty to bribing city councilmembers to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars, Feuer was disclosed as a recipient of these donations. Feuer's campaign has said there was nothing suspicious in his conduct, and he has returned the more than $13,000 raised by Kim. Nonetheless, it has been stated that this citywide scandal could play a role in the 2022 election.[45]

In 2015, the Los Angeles Times reported that De León called the Greenlining Institute, a nonprofit organization based in Berkeley, and asked if his daughter could apply to work there.[46] At the time his daughter started work at Greenlining in June 2014, De León was guiding a bill, SB 1275, supported by Greenlining through the legislature that he had introduced in February of that year.

A Loyola Law School professor, who was vice president of the Los Angeles Ethics Commission, was cited by the Los Angeles Times as stating that the action appeared inappropriate for an elected official.

Ed Buck was a prominent LGBTQ advocate and wealthy political activist in California. In 2017, two African-American men were found dead of overdoses of methamphetamine at Buck's home. In 2019, Buck was finally arrested and charged in connection to the deaths, suspected to have had at least ten victims. Buck stands accused of drugging and assaulting unconscious gay men who struggled with drug addiction and homelessness.[47][48]

Buck's large donations to prominent political figures, including Eric Garcetti and Jackie Lacey, have drawn controversy. According to the Los Angeles Times, Mike Feuer was the second largest recipient of donations from Buck.[49]

Between 2014 and 2017, the California State Legislature failed to pass several bills which would create whistle-blower protections for state legislative employees who reported "unethical, immoral, or inappropriate behavior." Speculated candidate De León did not support these bills and was accused of protecting political allies by activists and his then-opponent for U.S. Senate, Dianne Feinstein.[50][51] In November 2017, more than 300 women in and around the state Capitol signed a published letter, exposing misconduct in California politics as part of the Me Too movement.[52] Though De León soon reversed his position and dropped his opposition to proposed whistleblower legislation, he received criticism over his motives in not supporting previous bills.[53]

At the time, De León shared a residence with California State Senator Tony Mendoza, who was accused of sexually harassing three women who previously worked in his office. Attorneys representing Mendoza's accusers also argued that they had reported harassment to State Senate officials several times in September 2017 before detailing their allegations in a meeting on September 22 — when they were promptly fired by being handed a letter on Rules Committee letterhead.[54] In February 2018, De León called for a vote of the legislature to expel Mendoza. Mendoza resigned before a vote could be called, claiming the vote was politically motivated.[55] Nonetheless, many speculate De León's past record could haunt him in the mayoral race.