Doug Trussler

YIMBY LA was started with the premise of more housing, period. That has led us to value certain forms of thinking about incentives, and we believe Doug exhibits that thinking. In addition to his background in the private sector, Doug presented to us a clear understanding that Santa Monica’s housing affordability crisis is embedded in supply and excessive regulation, and approval processes are a hindrance to that supply. Santa Monica is a high-demand city with a heavy status quo bias from both homeowners and many renters. He also believes Santa Monica has to be proactive in approving and building thousands of units of new housing in the downtown Santa Monica area. We think he will add an analytical, no frills, no spin approach to building the future of Santa Monica if elected to the city council. It is with these observations that we recommend his election.

Doug Trussler is a candidate for Santa Monica City Council in the November 3, 2026 general election. A businessman, he founded the investment firm Bison Capital in Santa Monica with one partner; it has partnered with more than 45 businesses, focusing on renewable energy and healthcare. He earlier worked in investment banking at First Boston, then joined the investment fund Windward Capital Partners. Born in Tanzania and raised in Canada, he graduated from the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario in 1993 and became a U.S. citizen in 2010. He has served on the AYSO Region 20 board and as a coach and referee.