Incumbent Democratic Mayor Karen Bass has advanced to November’s run-off election to determine who will run California’s largest city, Los Angeles. With votes still being counted late on Tuesday night, Bass was first to go through, according to a projection by the BBC’s US partner CBS News, but it remains unclear who she may face.
It could be either her fellow Democrat, city council member Nithya Raman, or the Republican newcomer and reality television star Spencer Pratt.
The winner will lead the second-largest city in the US, grappling with issues like homelessness and affordable housing as Los Angeles gears up to host the 2028 Olympics.
The election was one of many primaries across California, Iowa, New Jersey and New Mexico on Tuesday that will shape the midterm elections that will happen across the country in November.
Meanwhile, votes were still being counted late on Tuesday in the California governor’s primary race, where the top two contenders will likewise move forward to the November general election.
California has “jungle primaries” meaning the top two candidates for governor and for LA mayor advance from the primary stage, regardless of party affiliation.
In Los Angeles, a mayoral candidate who gets 50% or more votes wins the election outright. If no candidate reaches that threshold, the top two candidates advance.
With 63% of the votes counted by early Wednesday morning, Bass had 35%, Pratt 30% and Raman 22%.
If Bass wins the contest in November, it will be her second and final term as mayor.
She has had a lengthy career in politics and community organising in LA, serving six terms in Congress representing parts of Los Angeles. She chaired the Congressional Black Caucus and was a key member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
In 2020, she was reportedly floated as a potential running mate for then-presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
The defining issues of her mayoral term have been addressing the city’s homelessness crisis, responding to federal immigration raids and managing the emergency response to the Palisades Fire – which was one of a series of destructive blazes in Southern California in January 2025.
Bass has faced widespread criticism in the aftermath of the fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and left 12 people dead. It became one of California’s most destructive fires on record, and the city’s response has been heavily criticised.
Among the critics is Pratt, a registered Republican, who launched a longshot campaignfor mayor in January, on the anniversary of that wildfire that destroyed his home.
The 42-year-old emerged as a vocal critic of Bass and her handling of the fire, which tore through his wealthy coastal community.
Although he has a degree in political science, Pratt is a political outsider who has never held public office. He has campaigned on a message of fixing a broken Los Angeles, casting the city at times as unsafe and unclean, and advocating mandatory drug treatment to help combat homelessness in the city.
The former publicist rose to fame in 2007 when he joined the cast of The Hills, a spin-off of the MTV reality show Laguna Beach, as the boyfriend of Heidi Montag. His character often ramped up drama and spread rumours with his sometimes abrasive persona.
Pratt and Montag later married, and they now have two children. The decision of Raman, an urban planner, to enter the mayoral race was something of a surprise – just before the filing deadline and shortly after she had already endorsed Bass.
The left wing 44-year-old has served on the Los Angeles City Council since 2020, but has not gained a mayoral endorsement from any of her city council colleagues.
Raman has been compared to New York
City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a fellow member of the Democratic Socialists of America organisation.
Her campaign platform has focused on expanding affordable housing, reducing homelessness and bringing jobs back to Hollywood. She has argued Bass has not done enough to address the city’s homelessness issue.
California governor race pending
Polls have closed and ballots are still being counted for results in the California governor’s race.
It has become the most expensive gubernatorial race on record, with frontrunners considered to be Steve Hilton, a British American TV host endorsed by President Donald Trump; former Biden administration health secretary Xavier Becerra; and left-wing billionaire Tom Steyer.
The race has been a roller-coaster and has lacked any clear front-runner in a state that has been run by liberals since 2011.
Hilton, an adviser to former British Prime Minister David Cameron, was known for helping to shape Conservative Party strategy during a turbulent period in British politics which resulted in Brexit. He is also known for his California fashion sense, often barefoot without tie.
In California, he has campaigned to “disrupt the system”, vowing to solve the homelessness crisis and arguing the state should cooperate more closely with the federal government on immigration enforcement and roll back sanctuary policies.
Becerra has framed his campaign around his lifetime of work in politics and his credibility working in Congress in Washington DC, and in California in state office. He has vowed to fight Trump’s policies and promised to freeze insurance and utility rates for Californians.
Steyer has campaigned on progressive issues like a single-payer healthcare system. He has also vowed to close loopholes to ensure California’s wealthy pay a greater share of taxes.
The election comes at a time when many are struggling to make ends meet in the Golden State, which has the highest cost of living in the country.
By BBC News
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