In Race for Los Angeles DA, Hochman, Siddall Tout Campaign News

Two of the candidates trying to unseat the egregious Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon both say they are leading in the race to replace him, but in different ways.

Current Deputy District Attorney Eric Siddall’s campaign released today results of a poll they commissioned showing Siddall as the leading alternate to Gascon in the March, 2024 primary vote.

The poll, of 634 county voters and done by LA firm FM3, shows Gascon with a lead but Siddall in a group in second place.  The more positive news Siddall’s team is highlighting are the results of a follow-up question asked after “positive information” about each of the candidates had been given to the poll’s respondents that put Siddall squarely in a close second to Gascon.

The poll also shows Siddall beating Gascon in a potential head-to-head vote (if both in the November runoff) by more than 2 to 1.

“This poll clearly shows that the people of LA County are fed up with George Gascón’s failures,” said a Siddall spokesperson.  “They want real change – and they want a new DA who has taken on gangs, drugs, gun violence and police murderers. At the same time, the people of LA County want a DA who will rebuild the office so that it actually fights crime and improves public safety. Eric Siddall is the only candidate who meets this criteria.”

In the initial “who do you support?” question, Gascon pulled 16%, much in line with a previous poll not paid for by a campaign.  Challengers Siddall, Jeff Chemerinsky, and John McKinney were in second at 6%, Debra Archuleta and Jonathan Hatami pulled 5%, and at 3% were Maria Ramirez, Craig Mitchell, and Nathan Hochman (David Milton was not referenced in the poll.)

After being given “positive information” about each of the candidates, Gascon dropped to 15% and Siddall jumped to 11%.  McKinney came in at 8%, Chemerinsky at 7%, Archuleta and Hatami pulled 6%, Ramirez and Hochman at 5%, and Mitchell stayed the same at 3%.

The undecided voter number hovered between 34% and 40%, meaning – along with the relatively bunched results of both polls – the race is up for grabs.  

The poll also shows the weakness of Gascon going into the March primary and his extreme weakness if he makes it through the primary and has to face, well, anyone head-to-head in November.

Also in a leadership position in the race is Nathan Hochman, who announced today that he has raised $1 million for his campaign.  While the candidates do not have to submit financial reports for 2023 until the end of January, Hochman did show a vast fundraising lead in the first round of official reporting a few months ago.

Hochman said his haul – almost certainly the largest in the campaign so far – is not just from big donors and that more than 1,000 people have supported his campaign financially.

“I am so grateful to those across the political spectrum from every corner of this county who have supported our campaign,” Hochman said. “I will use these resources to defeat George Gascon, eliminate pro-criminal policies contributing to an increase in crime, and restore public safety in the county I love.”

In 2020, Gascon outspent then-DA Jackie Lacey by $12.5 million to $7 million dollars.  He was able to pull in very large donations from very woke foundations and corporate titans, but that may not happen this time around and Hochman’s fundraising skill could prove to be a key asset in the campaign going forward.