52%: Raman Defeats Incumbent Bass for LA Mayor
Nithya Raman becomes the city's first South Asian mayor after unseating Karen Bass, marking the first ousting of an incumbent in nearly 25 years.
By Fatima Saleh ·
Los Angeles voters rejected the incumbent mayor on Thursday, electing Nithya Raman in a contest that ended a long tenure for Karen Bass. Raman, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and a city council member for six years, secured 52% of the vote to Bass's 48% in the final count. The result marks the first time an incumbent has been defeated for the mayor's office in the city in nearly a quarter century.
Raman, who is of Indian descent, becomes the first South Asian mayor of Los Angeles. She was elected to the City Council in 2020, a campaign that saw her oust an incumbent with backing from the DSA. Her path to the mayoral race began abruptly in February 2025, when she filed to run against Bass on the last day possible, just weeks after endorsing the incumbent. At the time, polls indicated Bass was highly unpopular, particularly following the Palisades Fire and a growing homelessness crisis.
Bass conceded the race in a statement Thursday morning, acknowledging that the people of Los Angeles had spoken. She described it as an honor to serve the city that raised her and committed to ensuring a smooth transition. Raman responded in a video statement, calling herself deeply honored and pledging to build affordable housing, improve parks, and fix the transit system. She stated that her work starts immediately to create a city government capable of delivering on its promises.
The campaign featured a sharp divide in endorsements. While Bass received support from the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, the Chamber of Commerce, and the L.A. County Federation of Labor, Raman secured backing from three major unions that broke with the Federation. These included the Western States Council of Carpenters, UNITE HERE Local 11, and the United Auto Workers. Hedge fund manager Aaron Sosnick also poured more than $8.5 million into ads supporting Raman and bashing Bass, funneling some funds through the community group Streets for All.
Outside independent expenditures totaled $16 million for Bass and against Raman, compared to $13 million for Raman and against Bass. Raman also relied on a door-knocking campaign involving more than 11,000 volunteers who visited over 110,000 doors. A UC Berkeley and L.A. Times poll taken days before the election showed support closely correlated with age, with voters ages 30 to 39 overwhelmingly favoring Raman, while Bass drew much of her support from older voters.
Raman faces a challenging political environment upon taking office. All but one of her colleagues on the City Council backed Bass, including three DSA members. City Controller Kenneth Mejia was the only elected official at City Hall to endorse Raman. She may find an ally in the race for city attorney, where DSA-backed Marissa Roy leads Deputy District Attorney John McKinney.
Bass, 73, was the first Black woman to serve as L.A. mayor and had previously served as speaker of the California State Assembly and in the U.S. House of Representatives. Her popularity plummeted after the Palisades Fire, during which she was out of town and criticized for the Fire Department's response. Audits also found deep mismanagement of hundreds of millions of dollars by the regional Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, on whose board Bass sat until recently.
