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Ongoing story / Nithya Raman

The 2026 Los Angeles mayor's race: Karen Bass vs. Nithya Raman

Overview · reviewed November 8, 2026

Los Angeles City Council member Nithya Raman, a democratic socialist, unseated Mayor Karen Bass in November 2026, after the two led a June primary in which the former reality TV star Spencer Pratt also ran.[1][2][3] Bass faced criticism over the city's response to the January 2025 Palisades Fire, and a late October poll showed the race tight.[4][5] Bass conceded two days after the election, and Raman will be the city's first Asian American mayor.[3]

Read the timeline

Follow this story to see new developments when you return.

Bass faced criticism over the city's response to the January 2025 Palisades Fire, and a late October poll showed the race tight.[4][5] Bass conceded two days after the election, and Raman will be the city's first Asian American mayor.[3]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2026-02-02 (UTC): 2%, 4 of 177 tracked outlets (1 left, 1 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-02-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-04 (UTC): 5%, 8 of 175 tracked outlets (2 left, 4 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-05-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-25 (UTC): 1%, 2 of 185 tracked outlets (0 left, 1 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-06-01 (UTC): 7%, 13 of 186 tracked outlets (4 left, 5 center, 4 right)Week of 2026-06-08 (UTC): 13%, 25 of 200 tracked outlets (6 left, 11 center, 8 right)Week of 2026-06-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-10 (UTC): 1%, 6 of 545 tracked outlets (2 left, 3 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-08-17 (UTC): 8%, 37 of 464 tracked outlets (8 left, 13 center, 16 right)Week of 2026-08-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-31 (UTC): 1%, 5 of 475 tracked outlets (2 left, 1 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-09-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-21 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-28 (UTC): 1%, 4 of 476 tracked outlets (1 left, 3 center, 0 right)Week of 2026-10-05 (UTC): 1%, 6 of 479 tracked outlets (1 left, 3 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-10-12 (UTC): 2%, 8 of 476 tracked outlets (1 left, 4 center, 3 right)Week of 2026-10-19 (UTC): 2%, 8 of 479 tracked outlets (3 left, 4 center, 1 right)Week of 2026-10-26 (UTC): 2%, 8 of 473 tracked outlets (2 left, 4 center, 2 right)Week of 2026-11-02 (UTC): 10%, 47 of 471 tracked outlets (14 left, 22 center, 11 right)Week of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 7 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (14 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Nov 2, 202614221147 of 47110%
Oct 26, 20262428 of 4732%
Oct 19, 20263418 of 4792%
Oct 12, 20261438 of 4762%
Oct 5, 20261326 of 4791%
Sep 28, 20261304 of 4761%
Aug 31, 20262125 of 4751%
Aug 17, 20268131637 of 4648%
Aug 10, 20262316 of 5451%
Jun 8, 2026611825 of 20013%
Jun 1, 202645413 of 1867%
May 25, 20260112 of 1851%
May 4, 20262428 of 1755%
Feb 2, 20261124 of 1772%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Nov 7, 2026 · first reported · Headline from WHEC Rochester

    Nithya Raman to take charge in LA amid homeless crisis and political division

Background

Kamala Harris endorsed Bass in May, calling her "the leader Los Angeles needs right now" despite criticism over the fire response.[4] In the June primary Bass advanced to the general election, while Pratt held second in early returns;[1] days later Raman overtook him to claim the other spot.[2] The fires are followed in their own arc.

Read the full background (2 more paragraphs)

In August Raman was expected to lose her leadership role on the council's housing and homelessness committee, setting up a fight over the city's homelessness response.[6] That month a poll showing Bass well ahead turned out to be fake; the company behind it said it had released it as a "social experiment."[7] The candidates attacked each other in their first general election debate,[8] and the Democratic Socialists of America endorsed Raman.[9] In October her campaign deleted a video criticizing Police Chief Jim McDonnell,[10] County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath endorsed her,[11] and a poll showed one of the most competitive runoffs in recent city history.[5]

Results were slow to come. Bass had a narrow advantage in the early returns before Raman moved ahead, KTLA reported, and Raman held about 52% of the vote when the race was called. Bass conceded in a phone call on November 5, saying, "While this is not the outcome we hoped for, the people of Los Angeles have spoken."[3] Raman, a 45-year-old former urban planner who had once endorsed Bass, won without the endorsement of any of her 14 council colleagues, while the police union opposed her and the Democratic establishment lined up behind Bass.[3][12] Her win follows that of democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani in New York's 2025 mayoral race, and she takes office facing the city's homelessness crisis.[3][12]

Supporting stories (12)
  1. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass pulled into a runoff in her race for a second term
  2. Nithya Raman Advances to Runoff Against Karen Bass in L.A. Mayor’s Race, Spencer Pratt Out of Running
  3. Nithya Raman poised for LA mayoral victory over Karen Bass after latest ballot drop
  4. Kamala Harris endorses L.A. Mayor Karen Bass for reelection
  5. Your last-minute guide to the L.A. mayor's race: Bass vs. Raman
  6. Nithya Raman faces losing LA City Council homelessness committee leadership amid mayoral race
  7. A fake poll fooled the LA mayor’s campaign. It’s a ‘wake-up call’ for other politicians
  8. Bass, Raman spar over homelessness in heated LA mayoral debate
  9. Nithya Raman wins Democratic Socialists’ endorsement in bid to unseat LA Mayor Karen Bass
  10. Nithya Raman campaign posts, deletes 'fascist liars' video criticizing LAPD chief
  11. Horvath backs Raman in mayor's race, giving her a strong ally in the Valley and Westside
  12. Nithya Raman to take charge in LA amid homeless crisis and political division

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 17 recorded updates

November 2026

  1. Nithya Raman to take charge in LA amid homeless crisis and political divisionHeadline from Bangor Daily News · 7 outlets

October 2026

  1. Nithya Raman poised for LA mayoral victory over Karen Bass after latest ballot dropHeadline from New York Post · 50 outlets
  2. Your last-minute guide to the L.A. mayor's race: Bass vs. RamanHeadline from Los Angeles Times · 8 outlets
  3. In struggling LA, Mayor Karen Bass fights for 2nd term against democratic socialist-backed RamanHeadline from Bangor Daily News · 5 outlets
  4. Horvath backs Raman in mayor's race, giving her a strong ally in the Valley and WestsideHeadline from Los Angeles Times · 3 outlets
  5. Karen Bass, Nithya Raman clash in final Los Angeles mayoral debateHeadline from KTLA Los Angeles · 9 outlets
  6. Nithya Raman campaign posts, deletes 'fascist liars' video criticizing LAPD chiefHeadline from ABC 7 Los Angeles · 5 outlets

September 2026

  1. LA mayoral candidates clash over use of ‘genocide’ term, Gaza, antisemitism at forumHeadline from Foxla · 4 outlets
  2. Bass, Raman clash over climate, address undecided Spencer Pratt voters in race for LA mayorHeadline from Foxla · 1 outlet
  3. Nithya Raman wins Democratic Socialists’ endorsement in bid to unseat LA Mayor Karen BassHeadline from New York Post · 4 outlets

August 2026

  1. Bass, Raman spar over homelessness in heated LA mayoral debateHeadline from KTLA Los Angeles · 8 outlets
  2. A fake poll fooled the LA mayor’s campaign. It’s a ‘wake-up call’ for other politiciansHeadline from CalMatters · 33 outlets
  3. Nithya Raman faces losing LA City Council homelessness committee leadership amid mayoral raceHeadline from Foxla · 6 outlets

June 2026

  1. Nithya Raman Advances to Runoff Against Karen Bass in L.A. Mayor’s Race, Spencer Pratt Out of RunningHeadline from Variety · 31 outlets

May 2026

  1. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass pulled into a runoff in her race for a second termHeadline from NBC News · 13 outlets
  2. Kamala Harris endorses L.A. Mayor Karen Bass for reelectionHeadline from Los Angeles Times · 8 outlets

February 2026

  1. Rick Caruso says he won’t run for LA mayor after teasing potential return to raceHeadline from New York Post · 4 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →