By Michael Phillips | CABayNews
LOS ANGELES — Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, rapper, and producer Tish Hyman has officially entered the race for mayor of Los Angeles, announcing her candidacy on January 15, 2026, with a blunt message to voters: “It’s time to UNITE IN TRUTH.”
Hyman’s announcement, shared on X under her handle @listen2tish, signals the arrival of one of the most unconventional—and already polarizing—figures in the 2026 mayoral contest. A Bronx native who moved to Los Angeles around 2010 to pursue music, Hyman has built a large independent following online, parlaying cultural credibility into a fast-growing political profile.
From Music to Activism
Before politics, Hyman was best known for her work as a Grammy-nominated artist collaborating across hip-hop, R&B, and pop. In recent years, however, she has increasingly positioned herself as a cultural truth-teller, using her platform to confront issues she says political leaders avoid.
That shift accelerated in late 2025, when Hyman went viral for publicly challenging policies allowing biological males into women’s locker rooms at commercial gyms, including an incident at Gold’s Gym Beverly Center that resulted in her membership being revoked. The controversy sparked a national debate over women’s privacy and safety, drawing praise from supporters and fierce criticism from progressive activists.
Hyman’s activism led to high-profile media appearances, including an interview with Megyn Kelly, and public clashes with Democratic lawmakers such as Scott Wiener and Eric Swalwell. She frames her stance not as partisan, but as a defense of “basic boundaries and biological reality.”
A Sharp Critique of City Leadership
Hyman is positioning her campaign as a direct challenge to incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, who is seeking reelection. In recent months, Hyman has posted videos from Skid Row, calling the city’s homelessness crisis “inhumane” and accusing political leaders of normalizing dysfunction rather than fixing it.
She has also criticized Governor Gavin Newsom, arguing that years of Democratic one-party rule have produced worsening public safety, open-air drug markets, and collapsing public trust.
In contrast to many progressive activists, Hyman has expressed vocal support for law enforcement, publicly thanking Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and calling for a return to basic order, accountability, and enforcement of the law.
An Outsider Field Takes Shape
The June 2, 2026, mayoral primary is still months away, but the field is already crowded. In addition to Bass and Hyman, candidates include former LAUSD Superintendent Austin Beutner, housing advocate Rae Huang, social media figure Spencer Pratt, and entrepreneur Asaad Alnajjar.
Hyman has been quick to clarify that her run is serious—and explicitly aimed at unseating Bass. “I’m running against the mayor,” she wrote in replies to her announcement, distancing herself from novelty candidates and signaling she intends to compete on substance.
Early Momentum, Open Questions
While Hyman lacks traditional political experience, her campaign reflects a broader voter frustration with establishment leadership in Los Angeles. Rising crime concerns, persistent homelessness, collapsing affordability, and cultural flashpoints have created an opening for outsider candidates willing to challenge progressive orthodoxy.
For now, Hyman’s platform remains more thematic than detailed, centered on “truth,” public safety, and human dignity. Policy specifics on homelessness, housing, and economic recovery are expected to follow as the campaign matures.
Whether voters see her as a serious reformer or a protest candidate remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: in a city weary of managed decline, Tish Hyman’s entry ensures the 2026 mayoral race will be louder, more contentious, and harder for the political class to ignore.
CABayNews | California Politics
Coverage of the 2026 Los Angeles mayoral race continues as additional candidates, platforms, and endorsements emerge.
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