Nithya Raman Wins Los Angeles Mayoral Race as Karen Bass Concedes

Karen Bass entered the November 3 election seeking a second term as mayor of Los Angeles. Her challenger, City Council member Nithya Raman, was a fellow Democrat and democratic socialist, according to The Hill.

The contest pitted former allies against each other. Deadline Hollywood described a Democrat-versus-Democrat campaign that became personal at times, while The Hollywood Reporter characterized Raman's bid as an insurgent progressive challenge to the city's Democratic Party machine.

On November 3, the campaign's attacks continued into Election Day. The New York Post reported that Bass took a swipe at Raman with a blooper reel.

Early returns left the outcome unresolved. In its November 4 report, Variety Movies described a tight race and said a call might take days. It also reported a buoyant mood at Raman's election-night gathering at the Greek Theatre plaza.

As counting continued overnight, Raman moved into a razor-thin lead, the New York Post reported on November 4. That marked a shift from the dead heat described in the initial coverage.

By the November 5 reports, the race had been called. The Hill reported that Decision Desk HQ projected Raman as the winner, with the call made Wednesday. NBC News also projected that Raman had defeated Bass.

Raman is the projected next mayor of Los Angeles, ending Bass's bid for a second term. CBS Top Stories also reported a projection that Raman had ousted the incumbent.

The result brings a historic first as well as a change at City Hall. Kerala-born Raman is set to become Los Angeles's first Asian-American mayor, according to Top World News- News18.com. The supplied coverage establishes the projected winner but does not provide a final certified vote total or margin.