Austin Beutner

Wave Wire Services

LOS ANGELES — Former Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Austin Beutner has announced his candidacy for mayor with a four-minute video released Oct. 13 on YouTube.

The 65-year-old investment banker and philanthropist, who ran the school district from 2018-21, will challenge Mayor Karen Bass in the June 2026 election.

“I’ll never accept the Trump administration’s assault on our values and our neighbors. Targeting people solely based on the color of their skin is unacceptable and un-American,” he said in the video.

But Beutner has questioned Bass’ record on crime and development issues, but focused his most withering criticism on her response to January’s devastating Palisades Fire, saying that the city showed a “failure of leadership” as

See Full Page