My family immigrated to the Westside of Los Angeles over fifty years ago. LA gave them a chance—they opened grocery stores and dry cleaning businesses, worked at LAX and fast food restaurants, helped found community institutions and mosques, and most importantly, they built a life here. I’m now proudly raising my children as fourth-generation Angelenos. 

That’s why it pains me to see countless Westside families and workers being priced out of the neighborhoods they helped create and shape. Parents are working multiple jobs and still struggling to afford rent and groceries. We don’t have enough affordable housing, and evictions keep rising, fueling our homelessness crisis. Childcare costs are through the roof. Workers endure long commutes to serve communities they can’t afford to live in. Homeownership is out of reach. Legacy small businesses are being pushed out. And our current leaders make the problem worse by voting against critical policies that would help. 

It does not have to be this way. We can create real affordability on the Westside and across the City—and I know how to get it done. I helped win the largest expansion of renter protections in over 40 years, keeping hundreds of thousands of Angelenos in their homes. In City Hall, I will continue to fight for renters and lead efforts to build more housing at all income levels in our district. I will champion new models like social housing and community land trusts, creating affordable rental and homeownership opportunities. I’ll expand on the income support for seniors and people with disabilities that I helped win via Measure ULA, and explore universal basic income programs to stop the inflow into homelessness. And I’ll invest in what makes neighborhoods livable for everyone: transit, green spaces, youth and senior programs, small business supports, and strong public services. 

I’ve spent my entire legal career holding governments accountable and working in community-based coalitions that serve everyday people. I’ve fought for and won policies to build more housing and prevent people from falling into homelessness. I’ve taken on the powerful corporate landlord lobby, successfully defending the City’s renter protections in court three times. Until recently, I was a lead attorney on a fair housing lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles for allowing city officials, including our current councilmember, to obstruct the City Council-approved Venice Dell affordable housing project in Venice. 

For too long, corporate and special interest money has shaped the policy in our district, prioritizing the wealthy over the needs and safety of the everyday people who live and work here. That influence has blocked shelters and housing solutions, enabled mass evictions such as those at Barrington Plaza, and fueled corruption, scandals, and mistrust in government. The result: a government that fails to protect working Angelenos or invest in the basic services our communities rely on. Our City government should be accessible, transparent, and accountable to the communities it serves, working hand-in-hand with constituents to develop and deliver the solutions people need.

As Councilmember, I will work tirelessly to make sure the City delivers for everyone in our district, not just the people who can afford to pay for access. I will make my council office a community hub for resources and services. I will bring community members into the legislative process, demystifying the work of government and ensuring community voices are heard at City Hall. I will develop policy priorities in partnership with local community members, not corporate donors. I am running a community-powered, clean money campaign, refusing campaign contributions from lobbyists, corporations, or the fossil fuel industry.

Like so many, several families close to mine lost everything in the Palisades fire. Beyond the devastating loss of thousands of homes, we lost schools, community spaces, local businesses, and natural resources that benefited families across the Westside. And yet, the aftermath of the fires has spurred beautiful community-building efforts. I’ve witnessed CD11 neighbors coming together to create mutual aid and donation networks, help each other navigate complex bureaucratic systems, and share rebuilding plans.

But the fire also exposed deep infrastructure vulnerabilities—and the recovery process has been filled with uncertainty for far too many. Seniors, renters, and families with the least means are being left behind. There’s little discussion in City Hall about long-term housing, land use, or resiliency planning. Without action, the Palisades risks becoming a neighborhood only the wealthiest can afford to return to.

As Councilmember, I will ensure that all families displaced by the Palisades fire, both homeowners and renters, have access to the streamlined resources and services they need to  rebuild their lives. I will champion a comprehensive community-led plan informed by experts for rebuilding the Palisades with sustainability, resiliency, affordability at its core, while also  preparing the district for future climate emergencies. I will ensure our City invests in better-resourced fire and emergency management departments, stronger building codes, smarter land use, and climate-resilient infrastructure. And I will work to preserve and protect the natural resources in our district, from the beautiful wetlands to our beloved beaches.

As a mom, raising my kids in a safe, supportive community is my top priority. I want them to be able to ride their bikes and cross the street without fear. I want them to feel free and safe playing at the park. And I want them to grow up in a neighborhood where people look out for one another.

Right now, our City is underinvesting in holistic systems of safety and care, and overinvesting in systems of punishment that increase crime instead of addressing its root causes. We feel less safe due to a lack of investment in transit infrastructure, safe streets, working streetlights, clean and functioning public restrooms, parks and community spaces, and the affordability crisis that’s pushing more of our neighbors onto the street. More people continue to die in traffic deaths than by homicide due to unsafe street design.

I will fight to create a Westside where safety is created through investments in care-first approaches. A City in which we don’t task social services to the police so they can focus on solving violent crimes. One in which, when someone is in crisis or in need, there are teams ready to mobilize and respond effectively and compassionately. A district where we reduce and prevent crime and accidents through comprehensive investments into our social safety net and City infrastructure, such as community amenities, working streetlights, parks and community spaces, and efficiently and effectively spending public dollars from Measure A and Measure ULA for more housing and mental health services. I’m fighting for a Westside where all families are treated with dignity and care, because when our neighbors are stable and supported, our whole community can be safer.

I am the proud daughter of Indian and Pakistani Muslim immigrants, born and raised in LA and Orange County. I became a civil rights lawyer to protect and defend the rights of vulnerable and marginalized communities. Attacks on immigrants, women, LGBTQ+ communities, and people exercising their First Amendment rights are deeply personal for me.

Right now people in Los Angeles and all across the country are terrified. Hard-won constitutional rights are under attack by the Trump Administration. Our social safety net and healthcare are being decimated and DOGE’d. People are being disappeared off the streets and ripped away from their families—some deported without reason or due process, and others held in detention centers. The Trump Administration is threatening institutions and state and local governments like Los Angeles for challenging their unlawful actions. And some of our local leaders are buckling. 

Los Angeles shouldn’t back down in the face of these threats. We don’t shy away from diversity, equity, and inclusion—we celebrate it here. Now is the time for our local leaders to step up to defend and protect our immigrant, LGBTQ+, and all vulnerable communities. As Councilmember, I will enforce our Sanctuary City laws, adopt stronger protections for immigrants, tenants, and workers, and defend our City against attacks from a federal government that seeks to divide and disappear our people.