Los Angeles mayor's race flips overnight as Raman takes 51.1% lead over Bass, result still undecided

The lead in the Los Angeles mayor's race changed hands overnight. Incumbent Mayor Karen Bass led in the first election-night returns, but by 3:11 a.m. on November 4, a vote tracker showed Councilmember Nithya Raman ahead with 377,458 votes (51.1%) to Bass's 360,864 (48.9%), a margin of about 16,594 votes, with 738,322 ballots counted, or an estimated 63% of the expected total.

From a Bass lead to a Raman lead

At around 10 p.m. on November 3, Bass had led with 292,876 votes (50.86%) to Raman's 282,935 (49.14%), a gap of about 9,941 votes. The first batches were mainly mail ballots returned and processed before election day, plus in-person ballots cast at vote centers before election day; as election-day ballots were added, Raman moved ahead late in the night. Snapshots taken at different times differ, which is normal while counting continues, and no single snapshot should be read as the final result.

How much counting is left

The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder's schedule calls for the next update at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, followed by updates at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. each day thereafter. Mailed ballots postmarked by Tuesday can arrive through November 10, and voters can fix envelope signature problems through 5 p.m. on November 25, with certification scheduled for November 27. Neither campaign has declared victory, and the race remains undecided.

Background to the race

Bass is seeking a second term as mayor of the country's second-largest city, while Raman is a sitting councilmember and former ally of Bass. In the June 2 primary, neither crossed the 50% threshold for an outright win (Bass 34.3%, Raman 29.0%), sending the race to the November 3 runoff. A pre-election poll from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, had both candidates at 40% among likely voters, with 19% undecided. The campaign has centered on homelessness, housing, public safety and preparations for the 2028 Olympics.