Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass Turned Down $600 Skims “Swag Bag” From Kim Kardashian

Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, turned down a Skims “swag bag” from Kim Kardashian.

Reuters editor Ben Welsh reported that the Kardashian family sent the mayor items worth $600 from Kim’s shapewear and clothing company, according to a log received through a public records request. The swag bag included Skims goods, liquor, hot sauce, makeup items and more.

But of the more than 130 gifts sent to Bass, including a $40 picture frame from CAA president Richard Lovett, the gift from the Kardashians that she received in April was one of the few she declined to accept. According to the city’s ethics commission, elected officials are required to report gifts valued at $50 or more, and gifts are limited to $590 per entity or person each year.

Other items Bass declined include a $97 necklace from Maya Brenner, jerseys worth $260 from Los Angeles FC, a jersey and gift bag from Los Angeles Dodgers’ Kristin McCowan, the senior director of government and community relations, and a handful of other clothing items and swag bags from other people and companies.

After defeating developer Rick Caruso in the race for mayor last year, Bass became the first Black woman to lead the second-largest city in the United States. Before mayor, she served as the U.S. representative for California’s 37th congressional district from 2013 to 2022.

Kim Kardashian founded Skims in 2019 as originally a shapewear company. Over the years, the company has become one of the reality TV star and businesswoman’s most popular brands, expanding into loungewear and sleepwear. According to Forbes, Skims is now worth more than $3.2 billion.