The Los Angeles mayoral race plunged into chaos this week after a series of dramatic developments: Incumbent Mayor Karen Bass (D) was accused of tampering with a vital wildfire report, a leading challenger abruptly exited the race following a personal tragedy, a new challenger threw his hat into the ring, and Bass’s 2022 opponent hinted at a possible last-minute entry just before the filing deadline.
The turmoil was sparked by a Los Angeles Times report on Feb. 4 that alleged Bass ordered edits to the after-action report on the catastrophic Palisades fire. The report claimed these changes were made to minimize the city and fire department’s failings. The January 2025 fire killed 12 people and destroyed approximately 6,800 structures in Pacific Palisades.
Within a day of the allegations dropping, the landscape in the mayoral contest shifted.
Austin Beutner, former Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent and a vocal Bass critic, withdrew from the race after the sudden death of his 22-year-old daughter. Meanwhile, billionaire developer Rick Caruso, the 2022 runner-up who had previously ruled out a 2026 run, announced he would reconsider a bid in light of the new allegations against Bass. And tech executive-turned-homeless advocate Adam Miller announced he would enter the race. Miller criticized Bass in an interview with the Los Angeles Times, claiming the city is on a downward trajectory, beset by problems, and needs strong leadership at City Hall.
The latest developments could significantly alter the June 2 primary election.
Bass has consistently denied any role in altering the after-action report on the Palisades fire to minimize the city and fire department’s shortcomings. However, sources familiar with the situation revealed that Bass expressed concerns to interim Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva after reviewing an early draft about possible legal risks if the report were released as written. She allegedly requested that critical findings regarding the Los Angeles Fire Department’s performance be removed or softened before the report was made public, a request that was ultimately fulfilled.
The Los Angeles Times uncovered these changes in a December 2025 investigation. The publication updated its findings when more sources came forward this week.
Individuals close to Bass confirmed her involvement in diluting the report. One confidant reportedly told a source that Bass was not truthful in her public statements about her lack of involvement and warned her that modifying the report could harm her politically. Additionally, both confidants are said to be willing to testify under oath about Bass’s actions if required by legal proceedings.
Bass’s office has pushed back strongly on the report.
“The Mayor has been clear about her concerns regarding pre-deployment and the LAFD’s response to the fire, which is why there is new leadership at LAFD and why she called for an independent review of the Lachman Fire mop-up,” a statement read. “There is absolutely no reason why she would request those details be altered or erased when she herself has been critical of the response to the fire — full stop. She has said this for months.”
Bass’s office added: “This is muckraking journalism at its lowest form. It is dangerous and irresponsible for Los Angeles Times reporters to rely on third-hand unsourced information to make unsubstantiated character attacks to advance a narrative that is false.”
Caruso told KNX News on Wednesday that he is reconsidering his decision not to run for mayor in light of the Los Angeles Times article.
“Well, I’ve gotten a lot of calls today, as you can imagine, and I know there’s been a lot of posts on X and other places, asking me to jump back in, and I’m honored by that,” he said. “But let’s give me some time, and I don’t have a lot of time to decide, obviously, because we’ve got a looming deadline this Saturday. But I’m going to be meeting and talking to the family, and we’ll see what we decide to do.”
LA FIRE CHIEF BRUSHES OFF CALLS TO INVESTIGATE EDITED PALISADES FIRE REPORT
Caruso added that “Firegate” falls directly at the foot of “Mayor Bass, which is beyond unacceptable because you take an oath in office as a mayor to protect the residents of the city. The intent of this report is to learn from the mistakes, understand the mistakes that were made, be honest about the mistakes, mistakes that were made, just so it doesn’t happen again and if you edit it, water it down, whatever you wanna call it, eliminate provisions in it, then you’re putting everybody at risk again, and it just violates the sacred duty that an elected official has to the residents.”
The mayor’s office did not respond to the Washington Examiner’s request for additional comment.
