Nithya Raman Faces AI Voice Controversy But Still Leads In Polls

LOS ANGELES, CA –  Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman is entering the final week of her challenge to incumbent Mayor Karen Bass amid a split with national leaders of the Democratic Socialists of America over Israel, a high-profile endorsement for her rival and a dispute over an AI-generated voice impersonating her.

Billionaire developer Rick Caruso, who lost to Bass in the 2022 mayoral election, said on October 26 that he would vote for the incumbent. “For the love of LA, I must put the past behind me because this election must be about our future…I will be casting my ballot for Mayor Karen Bass,” he posted.

Referring to Raman, Caruso said, “It is not so much about ideology, but about competence.” He later said he believed Bass would do a better job than Raman. Bass said she was “honored to receive his support”. Raman’s campaign responded to CBS Los Angeles with a link to an earlier endorsement of her by Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath.

The same day, Raman’s campaign filed complaints with the California Fair Political Practices Commission and the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission against Thrive LA, a super PAC backing Bass. The complaints concern a phone line advertised on signs as “Nithya Raman Realty”, where callers hear an AI-generated voice speaking in the first person as Raman.

When FOX 11 called the number, the voice said: “I’m as imaginary as my campaign promises.”

Raman’s campaign alleges that the phone line violates state laws on deceptive election media and AI disclosure. The complaints have not been ruled on.

“It’s both sad and illegal for Karen Bass’ conservative allies to be cloning Nithya’s voice, manufacturing her words, and hiding who is paying for it, all to deceive voters,” campaign spokesperson Liz Garcia said.

Thrive LA executive director Ana Dahan defended the phone line as political satire. “AI was a tool to express our First Amendment right for political satire,” she said. “Nobody would believe it’s a real human being.”

Raman, a Los Angeles City Council member, is also facing pressure from the national leadership of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which is considering whether to withdraw its Los Angeles chapter’s endorsement over her position on the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.

The DSA’s Los Angeles chapter endorsed Raman by 937 votes to 484, with 52 abstentions. Under resolutions approved by the DSA’s National Political Committee on Oct. 26, the committee will work with the Los Angeles chapter to organize an October 31 meeting with Raman to assess her position on BDS, the Los Angeles Times reported.

If Raman fails to “provide clear and unequivocal commitments”, the committee will vote on whether to rescind the endorsement, a DSA spokesperson confirmed to the newspaper.

The committee has also set a January 1 deadline for Raman to express support for BDS and condemn weapons shipments out of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). If she does not meet the conditions, the committee will move towards a vote on expelling her from the organization, according to a resolution quoted by the Los Angeles Times.

“We are disappointed that the members of the NPC passed their resolutions without reading the materials we sent them,” DSA-LA co-chair Leslie Chang told the newspaper.

Raman has emphasized her independence, describing her approach to Axios as “sewer socialism” or “pothole politics”. “I just want government to work for the people,” she said.

Despite the controversies, polls have shown Raman ahead of Bass. A September Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies/Los Angeles Times poll put Raman at 39 per cent and Bass at 28 per cent, with 33 per cent undecided. A Manhattan Institute poll showed Raman leading 38 per cent to 32 per cent, according to Axios. (IANS)