Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman (D) told CNN on Saturday she no longer believed it was necessary to “defund the police,” despite her calls to do so in the past.

The democratic socialist candidate — who is battling incumbent Karen Bass (D) and former reality star Spencer Pratt (D) to become LA’s next mayor — was asked by anchor Jessica Dean to explain her “position change,” after Dean noted Raman had called for defunding the police in 2020.

“Well, I think we need to be able to respond to calls for help. Public safety is incredibly important, and our police force has shrunk significantly,” Raman explained. “And I think we absolutely need to be able to ensure that when someone calls for help in this city, that the city is able to respond in a timely fashion and that they’re able to offer the help that we need.”

“So you no longer believe in defunding police?” Dean asked her a moment later.

“No,” Raman said.

“And what caused you to change your mind?” Dean followed up.

“I think we need to be able to ensure that the city can respond to calls for service, and we have to make sure that we are able to respond to calls for help around public safety issues,” Raman said. “And I think in order to do that at this moment with our response system, we need to be able to maintain the size of our police force.”

Raman’s answer comes after she started shifting away from her “defund the police” stance earlier this year, announcing two days after she started her campaign in February that she wanted to maintain current LAPD employment levels.

Pratt bashed Raman for it soon after, saying LA was sick of politicians who “bend over for whatever is convenient at that moment.”

“Nithya Raman is a perfect example,” Pratt said in a video posted to X. “When defunding the police was trendy with her base, she leaned in. When activists demanded it, she rolled with the mob. Now that families are less safe and too afraid to walk around their own neighborhoods, suddenly she’s against it. How is anyone supposed to trust her?

Raman has been an LA city councilmember since 2020. Pratt has ripped her and Bass for their handling of crime and the city’s homeless issue; he has also said Bass is unfit to lead the city after the way she handled the wildfires that ravaged LA in early 2025.

Prediction market Kalshi has Bass in the lead with a 49% chance to win on Saturday, followed by Pratt with a 29% chance. Raman was leading the pack with a 50% shot last week, but her odds have dropped to 18% on Saturday after the trio debated a few days ago.

Watch above via CNN.

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