Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón faced off via Zoom on Wednesday against his November election rival Nathan Hochman, with the two candidates trading direct but polite jabs in their first face-to-face meeting of the race.
The virtual forum was marked by technical glitches, rapid changes of topic and attacks from both candidates. Gascón defended his record as a prosecutor and laid out a progressive vision for another four years in office. Hochman, in turn, tried to present herself as the tougher alternative against crime.
Gascón, who has been the target of controversy since taking office four years ago on a platform of criminal justice reform, has backed off some of his bolder policies in the face of harsh criticism but said he continues to prioritize reducing the incarceration rate while holding offenders accountable and keeping crime low.
“We have evolved,” Gascón said, noting that the prosecutor’s office under his leadership has prosecuted “more than 100,000 serious and violent crimes.”
Citing one example, he noted his stance on sentencing enhancements, which can extend prison terms for certain crimes. Gascón initially halted the use of most enhancements, including for hate crimes, but said, “Very early on there were concerns about hate crime allegations, and we took them to trial.” [enhancements] back in.”
Hochman, a former federal prosecutor, repeatedly claimed his opponent was misrepresenting the facts and described the district attorney as presiding over “extreme policies” that leave Angelenos less safe.
“The district attorney election could not be more stark,” Hochman said. “They have attempted a social experiment with public safety,” he said later, “and it has failed and it is time to end it.”
Billed as a candidate forum, the event was hosted by the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles and moderated by Alex Cohen, a political reporter for Spectrum News 1. It started nearly 10 minutes late amid technical difficulties, with candidates struggling with the mute button and strictly imposed time limits on their responses to questions.
Hochman sat in front of a well-lit, antiseptic white background in a pressed dark suit and a close-fitting cap. Gascón was brightly lit and had knick-knacks and a potted plant behind him as he spoke.
Both men cherry-picked information and data that helped make their respective cases to voters. Hochman highlighted figures released by the California Department of Justice showing that violent crime in Los Angeles County rose 12.1% between 2020 and 2023. Property crime has also increased, he said.
“Don't let Gascón fool you into believing that crime has decreased when the California Department of Justice and your own personal experiences demonstrate [the opposite]“Hochman said.
State Department of Justice data shows that while rapes declined between 2020 and 2023, homicides remained stable in the county. But Gascón pointed to LAPD statistics showing that citywide, homicides declined 17% between 2022 and 2023.
Hochman criticized the incumbent for referencing city statistics, while the office's purview is the county. He also criticized the district attorney for incidents that occurred within the city of Los Angeles (which has its own city attorney), including protests, intimidation and violence on campuses and outside a synagogue.
Gascón responded to a similar barrage of attacks against Hochman by calmly stating that his opponent “has a problem with the truth. Tonight he doesn’t understand the role of the prosecution.”
Following Tuesday's widely watched presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, Gascón had one final criticism of her opponent, who is now an independent but previously ran for state attorney general as a Republican.
“Tonight we heard another Trumpist political alarmist,” he said. “We have now heard two very different visions for the future of our community.”
