Nithya Raman backed Karen Bass for re-election. Now she is poking fun at her in a Mean Girls spoof, released around Mean Girls Day on 3 October. It has put the Los Angeles mayoral race on people's feeds in a way budget hearings rarely manage.
The timing is deliberate, because the runoff falls on 3 November. One line in the clip has viewers talking, and it comes down to the calendar. With weeks to go, the question is whether a meme can carry a serious message to a city of nearly four million people.
Why Is Nithya Raman Mocking Mayor Karen Bass?
The clip, posted on Raman's @nithyaforthecity social media accounts, recreates the film's school corridor. A red-haired newcomer in a plaid shirt, whom viewers have dubbed the Cady stand-in, appears alongside on-screen captions including 'to fall in line.'
The film's famous date joke hinges on 3 October, so a 3 November twist lands as a neat punchline. Viewers also praised the Karen character and asked someone to name the song that closes the video.
The target is a former ally. Raman has sat on the LA City Council for District 4 since 2020, and she entered the race at the last minute after backing Bass. Bass allies have painted that as disloyalty.
Bass strategist Douglas Herman said the mayor looks forward to a contest against a rival who 'allows encampments near schools and cuts the police force.' Raman points out that two-thirds of primary voters cast ballots against the incumbent, and she has pledged to halve the number of people living in encampments by the 2028 Olympics.
Can Viral TikTok Campaigns Convert Undecided LA Voters?
Online reaction has been warm but not unanimous. One Reddit commenter called the November third line 'just perfect,' with another top commenter saying it was exactly the ad to run if you want millennial women to vote.
A non-American commenter replied that they knew nothing about her platform but suddenly felt the urge to vote. Sceptics wanted policy over parody, although one reply argued that the ad delivered some.
Storytelling is part of her strategy. Reports say her campaign earlier ran vertical microdramas, which paired soap-opera plotlines with her positions on public transport, tenant protections and rent stabilisation, and drew roughly 850,000 views before the June primary.
Several commenters also contrasted the human-made spoof with AI-generated Republican ads, noting a 'canyon-wide gap.' A scripted, cast parody can feel like a campaign having fun, while synthetic material can feel detached.
Can Raman Pull Off Being 'Cool'?
The risk is that it comes across as forced. Weeks ago, on the Higher Learning podcast, Raman hesitated when asked to name her favourite LA rappers, said 'I'm just shy,' then offered Snoop Dogg and Tupac Shakur.
Nithya Raman’s top 3 favorite LA rappers #higherlearningpodcast pic.twitter.com/kxszpZIs4Q
— Higher Learning (@Higher_Learning) September 29, 2026
Republican Party chair Roxanne Hoge seized on it. Pop-culture references only land when voters believe the candidate lives in that culture, and a Mean Girls joke works only when the teller looks in on it.
A UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll put Raman ahead 39% to 28% among likely voters, while 33% were undecided. The poll, conducted from 15 to 20 September among 2,150 likely Los Angeles voters, was co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times.
With a third of likely voters undecided, both campaigns have a substantial pool of voters still to reach. The result makes the closing weeks of the campaign particularly important for both candidates.
Raman's Mean Girls spoof has won attention online this week, but undecided voters will determine whether a viral moment translates into votes. As 3 November approaches, the runoff is testing whether digital-first campaigning can bring people to the ballot box.
