Key facts
- Decision Desk HQ projected Nithya Raman defeated incumbent Karen Bass in the Los Angeles mayor race.
- Raman, 45, is a Los Angeles City Council member endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America.
- Bass, 73, is the incumbent mayor and a former lawmaker in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.
- A Los Angeles Times/UC Berkeley poll before the vote showed the race in a dead heat.
- Bass held a fundraising lead, while Los Angeles County's Democratic Party and its Federation of Labor backed her.
Nithya Raman won the Los Angeles mayor race, defeating incumbent Karen Bass, Decision Desk HQ projected, according to a report published November 5, 2026. The projection was carried in a report that did not state the vote margin.
Raman, 45, is a Los Angeles City Council member who arrived in the city in 2013 and launched a council bid six years later. She was endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America and by Streets for All, a group that seeks to expand the city's bus and bike lane network. Bass, 73, is a veteran lawmaker who served in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., before becoming mayor. She drew support from Los Angeles County's Democratic Party and its Federation of Labor, which represents hundreds of thousands of workers.
Bass had struggled with unfavorable ratings after the 2025 firestorm, and homelessness and the Boyle Heights warehouse fire were among the issues that made her vulnerable, the report said. She held a fundraising lead. A Los Angeles Times/UC Berkeley poll before the vote showed the race in a dead heat.
The winner will be in office when the Summer Games come to Los Angeles in 2028. Raman initially opposed hosting the Games and said she would ensure they do not cause financial problems, while Bass said she focused on the Olympics as a source of lasting benefits for the city.