# California Housing Crisis Decides Mayoral Races

> California's housing wars between Democrats could decide mayoral and congressional races.
- Title: California Housing Crisis Decides Mayoral Races · Mother Jones
- Summary: California's housing wars between Democrats could decide mayoral and congressional races. California's housing crisis, with 1.5 million renters paying over…
- Keywords: california, housing, renters, affordable housing, mayoral race, congressional race, nancy pelosi, scott wiener, connie chan, nithya raman, karen bass, yimby
- Source: Mother Jones — https://motherjones.com/politics/2026/10/california-housing-crisis-nithya-raman-scott-wiener-karen-bass-connie-chan-nancy-pelosi
- Author: Adam Rogers
- Published: 2026-10-16T10:39:06+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: california, housing, renters, affordable housing, mayoral race, congressional race, nancy pelosi, scott wiener, connie chan, nithya raman, karen bass, yimby
## California Housing Crisis
A third of California renters, 1.5 million households, pay more than half their income in rent.
## LA Mayoral Race
Nithya Raman leads Karen Bass by 11 points in a Los Angeles Times poll.
## Karen Bass Response
Bass touted over 10,000 affordable housing units built during her administration.
## Scott Wiener Campaign
Wiener runs against Connie Chan for a congressional seat held by Nancy Pelosi since Ronald Reagan.
## YIMBY vs NIMBY
Wiener is a YIMBY advocating for housing, while Chan opposes new construction.
## Housing Deficit
California builds 80,000 homes yearly but should build 180,000, especially in coastal cities.
## San Francisco Housing
SF rents have risen 25 percent this year with one-bedroom apartments costing $4,000 monthly.
## Chan's Record
Chan has a history of voting against housing and transit-related laws in San Francisco.
## Bass' Housing Efforts
Bass implemented Executive Directive 1 to build 10,000 affordable housing units.
## Raman's Campaign
Raman, a Democratic Socialist, advocates for homebuilding in all neighborhoods.
## Housing Policy Debate
The debate centers on whether to build more housing and what 'affordable' means.
## YIMBY Movement
Wiener pushed laws to speed up housing construction without local opposition.
## Raman's Support
26 percent of LA voters say building affordable housing is a top priority for the next mayor.
## Bass' Response
Bass fired the chair of the city’s housing and homelessness committee after new homeless numbers.
## Housing Policy Confusion
Angelenos want housing to be affordable but not necessarily 'affordable housing' as defined.
## Housing Crisis Impact
California has 12 percent of US population but 22 percent of nation’s unhoused people.
## Key takeaway

California's housing crisis, with 1.5 million renters paying over half their income in rent, may decide mayoral and congressional races.