Raman leads Bass in L.A. mayor count, 51.1% to 48.9%
Ballots are still being counted, but the councilwoman holds a 16,594-vote advantage over the incumbent.
By Lucia Orlov ·
Los Angeles voters have cast more ballots for City Councilwoman Nithya Raman than for Mayor Karen Bass in the race for the top executive seat. The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office released figures on Wednesday showing Raman with 377,458 votes, or 51.12 percent, compared with 360,864 votes, or 48.88 percent, for Bass.
This shift marks a reversal from Tuesday, when Bass held a narrow early lead. Analysts suggest the swing may be driven by Raman’s base of younger voters, who often cast ballots closer to Election Day. The counting process is expected to continue through the week and into the following weeks, leaving the final outcome uncertain well into November.
The candidates have spent the last month trading blows over experience, public safety, and the city’s fiscal direction. In a UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times and released last week, both candidates stood at 40 percent support among likely voters, with 19 percent undecided. This result improved Bass’s standing from a September poll that showed Raman ahead by 11 percentage points.
Tensions rose in recent weeks when Bass and independent political action committees attacked Raman’s record on public safety. The criticism centered on Raman’s previous call to remove Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell. Raman also faced scrutiny after her campaign shared a video where she urged people to “stop fascist liars,” followed by images of Bass and McDonnell. During a televised debate, Bass pressed Raman on the clip. Raman later apologized after stating the LAPD was at a “gold standard” under former Chief Daryl Gates, citing Special Order 40, a directive that limits officer cooperation with immigration enforcement.
Bass sought a second term to continue her work on homelessness, housing, and public safety. She campaigned on her administration’s response to last year’s wildfires and its opposition to federal immigration raids. At a gathering in Hollywood on Tuesday night, Bass told supporters, “Four years ago, you gave me the honor of a lifetime to serve as the mayor of the city that raised me.” She added that she has carried that responsibility every day since taking office.
Raman positioned her campaign as a response to a broken status quo. Speaking at her election night party at Griffith Park, she noted that voters were angry at politicians who had failed them. “We have so much to celebrate tonight here in Los Angeles,” Raman said. “This election is about change, too, a city that was engineered over the last few decades to resist change.” She argued that City Hall had become too used to saying “no” and forgotten how to say “yes.”
The two candidates have sparred over specific budget items. Raman criticized Bass for pursuing costly contracts, including a billion-dollar agreement to raise police salaries and a project to modernize the downtown convention center. Raman proposed plans to improve basic services, increase housing production, and lower the cost of living. Bass’s campaign, in turn, described Raman as “not ready for prime time” and pushed for four more years to finish her agenda. Both candidates targeted undecided voters in the final days, with Raman drawing support from the Democratic Socialists of America and Bass securing more backing from older residents and supporters of former candidate Spencer Pratt.
