Kerala native Nithya Raman wins Los Angeles mayoral election
What's the story
Indian-origin politician Nithya Raman has won the Los Angeles mayoral election, defeating incumbent Mayor Karen Bass. The victory places her in the vanguard of democratic socialists in municipal government. In addition to New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Janeese Lewis George was elected on Tuesday as mayor of Washington, DC, after running unopposed, and Katie Wilson as mayor in Seattle. Raman had first been elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 2020 and announced her candidacy for mayor in February.
Political shift
Major political shift in Los Angeles
Raman's victory is a major political shift in Los Angeles, the second-most populous city in the United States.
She had publicly endorsed Bass before deciding to run against her.
The race turned into a generational and political contest with differing views on public safety, affordable housing, and homelessness.
Campaign strategy
Bass focused on older voters, Raman on college campuses
Bass, who had the support of the city's political establishment, including the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor and Democratic Party, focused her campaign on older voters.
She visited senior centers in West Adams and Northridge during her campaign, while Raman campaigned at bars, nightclubs, and college campuses with a message for change at City Hall.
Homelessness debate
Candidates received significant financial backing
During the campaign, Bass's administration claimed an 11% reduction in unsheltered homelessness, but Raman criticized her approach as costly and ineffective.
She promised to cut street homelessness by half by summer 2028 and completely eliminate it by the end of her first four-year term.
Both candidates received significant financial backing from outside political groups after the June primary election.
Candidate profile
Key issues for voters
Raman was born in Kerala in 1981 and moved to the US at 6. She is a Harvard University graduate with a master's degree in urban planning from MIT.
Before politics, she founded Transparent Chennai and worked with Los Angeles's municipal administrative officer.
An urban planner, she picked up notable support from advocacy and political groups, including Our Revolution, which was founded by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, and the Sierra Club.