Los Angeles County has a credible and viable district attorney’s race going, and it may be their salvation. Incumbent district attorney George Gascón could not even reach 30 percent of the vote on March 5, and the level of disgust with him among Angeleans only continues to rise.
Gascón’s challenger, former federal prosecutor and assistant U.S. District Attorney Nathan Hochman achieved just shy of 16 percent of the vote, but it is enough to be the top two vote-getter and included on the general election ballot.
On Friday, Hochman posted the official election results certification on X:
I officially qualified for a runoff against Gascon, who received the lowest % of the primary vote of any incumbent DA in history. His policies have failed & the people want a new DA who will advocate for crime victims & strive every day to keep them safe. #HochmanForDA pic.twitter.com/yJodgPCvWu
— Nathan Hochman (@NathanHochmanDA) March 30, 2024
And distributed a press release via email.
Nathan Hochman has officially qualified for the November runoff in the L.A. County District Attorney race against George Gascon, who received just 25.2% of the vote – a record low for an incumbent in a primary, according to the official vote totals certified today by the Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.
The results make Hochman a strong favorite to defeat Gascon in November. No incumbent Los Angeles County District Attorney has ever won re-election after receiving such a low percentage of the vote in a primary. Polling of 861 likely voters conducted March 3-4 found that Hochman would defeat Gascon by a 2-to-1 margin in the November election.
Hochman has significant momentum after finishing in first place among the 11 challengers, setting a fundraising record for the March 5 primary, and earning the recent endorsement of the Association of Deputy District Attorneys.
When I interviewed Nathan Hochman in January, he not only exposed the underbelly of Gascón—he has absolutely no experience in trying a case either as a defense attorney or a prosecuting attorney—but Hochman also laid out his vision and policies for the District Attorney’s office from Day 1.
WATCH:
Hochman further stated in his press release:
“The voters of Los Angeles County spoke loud and clear on March 5: Gascon’s extreme, pro-criminal policies have failed and the people want a new District Attorney who will advocate for crime victims and strive every day to keep them safe,” Hochman said. “The Golden Age of Criminals is coming to an end. Enough is Enough.”
Gascón continues to double down on his failed policies and insists that things are much better in Los Angeles County than they were four years ago when he took office. Certain California pundits think that having Hochman as his competitor actually gives Gascón an edge.
Though Hochman likes to tout his “independence” and is working to rally moderates and conservatives to make the runoff against Gascón, there’s nothing Gascón would like more than to face him. Gascón’s woeful popularity makes it hard for him to win against just about anyone – except a freshly converted Republican in an overwhelmingly Democratic electorate.
The race is strange enough then that Gascón’s greatest chance to retain his seat depends on the 2022 Republican candidate for California attorney general, now an independent who attacks him at every turn, advancing to November.
The flaw in this analysis is the writer views this race through the lens of Democrat vs. Republican, instead of safety and accountability vs. endangerment and irresponsibility. Now that the race has been drilled down to Gascón and Hochman, let us hope that Los Angeles County voters will have the wherewithal to demand a return to safety, accountability, and sanity–and jettison Gascón from office.
