Karen Bass Trails by 3 Points as Nithya Raman Projected to Win Los Angeles Mayor Race, Defeating Incumbent

Raman takes the lead

Decision Desk H.Q., an independent election polling site that partners with Ballotpedia, announced Raman’s projected victory. She was ahead by more than three percentage points, with close to three-quarters of expected ballots counted.

The lead could widen as election officials process mail-in ballots, which take longer to count and are expected to favor Raman’s base. The article does not give a final vote total.

A progressive outsider campaign

Raman ran as an outsider challenging the city’s Democratic Party establishment. Her victory is a major gain for the region’s progressive movement, which draws heavily from younger residents who rent rather than own homes.

At her Nov. 3 election night event at the Greek Theatre in Griffith Park, Raman criticized what she called “cynicism” about Los Angeles’ problems. She said the city was “worth fighting for,” according to her remarks.

Background and city priorities

Raman, 45, trained in urban planning at Harvard and MIT, founded a Los Angeles homelessness nonprofit and led Time’s Up before winning a City Council seat in 2020. Born in India, she is set to become the city’s first Asian American mayor.

Housing has been a central policy focus. Raman initially backed Measure ULA, the so-called Mansion Tax, then called for changes after the measure’s effects on apartment construction became clear. She also criticized Bass over the timing of an appointment of a film liaison, while both candidates supported expanded film and television tax incentives.

Bass, 73, was Los Angeles’ first female mayor and its second Black mayor. Her reelection campaign faced public anger over housing and affordability, the entertainment production exodus and her handling of the Palisades wildfire.