Nithya Raman projected to become Los Angeles' first Asian American mayor

City Councilmember Nithya Raman, a Harvard- and MIT-trained urban planner who ran an insurgent progressive campaign, is projected to defeat incumbent Mayor Karen Bass and become the first Asian American and the second woman elected mayor of Los Angeles.

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman is projected to unseat Mayor Karen Bass, a fellow Democrat, and become the city's 44th mayor, according to Decision Desk HQ. Raman would be the first Asian American mayor of Los Angeles and the second woman elected to the city's highest office.

Raman, 45, was born in India and trained as an urban planner at Harvard and MIT. She founded a Los Angeles homelessness nonprofit and served as executive director of Time's Up before winning her City Council seat in 2020. Her district stretches from the southern San Fernando Valley across the Hollywood Hills to Los Feliz and Silver Lake.

Raman with Mayor Karen Bass in 2023 (file photo)

After entering the race late, Raman ran as an outsider against the local party establishment and drew young voters with proposals focused on affordability, housing and municipal utilities. She was endorsed by City Controller Kenneth Mejia and attacked Bass's signature homelessness program, Inside Safe. The Los Angeles Police Department's union spent more than $5 million to oppose her, according to campaign finance records cited by The 19th.

With nearly three-quarters of the expected vote counted, Raman led by more than three percentage points, The Hollywood Reporter said. The full count may take a week or longer because mail ballots postmarked by Election Day remain valid. The next mayor will lead the city through the 2028 Olympics.