Libby Rainey by LAist
Originally published on Feb. 2, 2026
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass laid out her vision for Los Angeles at her first of two “State of the City” addresses Monday afternoon at Exposition Park.
The speech, which comes as her race for re-election ramps up, was framed as a celebration of the coming World Cup.
“Let’s show the nation and the world we are the greatest city on earth,” Bass told the crowd outside the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
But the mayor moved quickly from announcing that there would be more than 100 free watch parties for the tournament into a retrospective of L.A.’s terrible 2025 — from the January fires to the immigration agents that descended on the city in June and haven’t left.
“Raids continue every day in Los Angeles and with them have come the devastating losses of life,” she said, naming Renee Good, Alex Pretti and Keith Porter Jr., who was shot by an off-duty ICE agent in Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve. “ This senseless death, lawlessness and violence must end and so must the presence of ICE in Los Angeles.”
Bass described local leaders as the last line of defense against the actions of the federal government.
L.A.’s fire recovery
She also discussed the ongoing recovery of Pacific Palisades, where she has faced substantial criticism for the city’s response to the fire and first year of rebuilding, which some residents say has been too slow.
“ We’ve brought in new leadership to overhaul fire preparedness and emergency response,” Bass said, referencing her decision to remove former fire chief Kristin Crowley. “And yes, we’re fighting the next battle: holding financial institutions and the insurance industry from abandoning Los Angeles because recovery should never feel harder than the disaster itself.”
Bass said 400 homes lost to the fire are currently under construction, and that she would travel to Sacramento next week with Councilmember Traci Park and Pacific Palisades residents to push for more state funding for recovery. The Palisades Fire destroyed nearly 7,000 homes and killed 12 people.
The mayor’s response to the Palisades Fire is a key issue in her race for re-election. Two of Bass’s challengers, former LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner and influencer Spencer Pratt, had their homes damaged or destroyed in the disaster.
Housing and homelessness
Bass then laid out her efforts around housing and homelessness, pointing to an affordability crisis that makes staying in stable housing, or buying a first home, out of reach for many Angelenos.
“The greatest test of L.A. is whether people can actually afford to live here year across Los Angeles,” the mayor said in her address. “Too many neighbors are packing multiple families into one apartment are working two and three jobs just to stay housed.”
Bass lauded her first executive directive ordering city officials to fast-track the construction of developments that have entirely affordable housing units, which she said had “accelerated more than 30,000 housing units across the city.” She also celebrated the city’s move to significantly lower rent hikes, in the first reform to rent control in 40 years.
Bass then turned to homelessness, doubling down on her commitment to her signature “Inside Safe” program, which aims to move people off the streets and into interim housing. She said that the city had cleared nearly 120 encampments.
Bass focused on the fight to end homelessness for veterans in Los Angeles — a focus she said was interrupted by the 2025 fires. She said the city had issued 600 housing vouchers for veterans since last year.
She ended the speech where she started — talking about the city’s role as host of the World Cup and 2028 Olympic Games.
“ We will continue to focus on the fundamentals, the things that shape how a city feels to the people who live here and the millions who will visit,” she said.
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This is a developing story and will be updated.
This report is reprinted with permission from Southern California Public Radio. © 2026 Southern California Public Radio. All rights reserved.
