Progressive Los Angeles County district attorney George Gascón is in serious political jeopardy less than a month from election day as he faces a moderate challenger.
Gascón is trailing former federal prosecutor Nathan Hochman by 30 percentage points in a new University of California, Berkeley poll taken for the Los Angeles Times. The poll shows Hochman with 51 percent support from likely LA county voters and Gascón taking 21 percent of the vote. Almost a third of respondents, 28 percent, remain undecided among the sample of 908 likely voters taken at a 3 percent margin of error either way.
Hochman’s lead is five percentage points higher than it was in August for the previous UC Berkeley-LA Times poll. With the new poll, the Los Angeles County district attorney contest is “Hochman’s race to lose,” pollster Mark DiCamillo told the outlet.
The matchup between Gascón and Hochman pits a soft-on-crime progressive prosecutor against a moderate running on a “return to common sense,” an ideological and political conflict that has become commonplace in deep-blue city elections.
Gascón was elected during the 2020 Black Lives Matter racial reckoning, which brought progressive ideas into the mainstream alongside urban riots and violent crime spikes across American cities. He defeated Democratic incumbent Jackie Lacy with funding from progressive billionaires such as George Soros and Reid Hoffman.
Proponents of Gascón’s lax approach to crime believe they are making up for past racial injustices against black Americans and consider the criminal justice system and police departments to be inherently racist institutions. Critics say the anti-law enforcement progressive approach allows violent crime, civil disorder, and homelessness to run rampant, especially in poor minority neighborhoods where public safety is needed most.
A controversial politician, multiple attempts have been made to recall Gascón, but all have failed to gather enough valid signatures to make it onto the ballot.
“I feel very bullish about the final outcome,” Gascón told the LA Times. “When people ask me about the polls, I say it’s the poll on election day that really counts.”
Hochman unsuccessfully ran for California attorney general as a Republican two years ago. This time around, he is running as an independent and has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign.
Of those who support Hochman, 96 percent consider it important that he will be more effective at prosecuting violent crime, and 90 percent say the same for reducing turmoil at the district attorney’s office. Similarly, 87 percent of Hochman backers place importance on seeking enhanced sentences for repeat criminal offenders, and 87 percent believe it is important that he work more closely with law enforcement.
“People do not feel as safe as they did before George Gascón took office and they want a D.A. who will prosecute crime, restore balance and improve public safety,” Hochman said in a statement to the LA Times.
In contrast, 91 percent of Gascón supporters say his push for police accountability is an important reason for backing him, and 85 percent say so for his criminal-justice reform efforts.