LOS ANGELES, CA – Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilmember Nithya Raman spent the final weekend before the Nov. 3 general election rallying volunteers and voters in a race that a new poll shows tied among likely voters.
Voters will decide the contest Tuesday, Nov. 3, between Bass, who is seeking a second term, and Raman, who represents Council District 4. A UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll published Oct. 28 found the two tied at 40% each among likely voters, with 19% undecided. A poll is a snapshot of voter preferences during a specific period, not a prediction of the result.
Neither candidate won outright in the June primary, when Bass received about 34% of the vote and Raman about 29%. Public safety and homelessness have been the central issues of the runoff.
Both campaigns have leaned on volunteers in the closing days. Supporters of each candidate describe their choice in very different terms.
Volunteers explain their choices
Shirley Dace, a retired flight attendant, spent an afternoon at South La Brea Avenue and Obama Boulevard cold-calling Angelenos on Bass’s behalf. She said she backs the mayor because of her experience and because Bass was raised in Los Angeles and knows the city.
On the other side of town, Christian Perez and Marium Mohiuddin organized a night of door-knocking for Raman in Boyle Heights. Perez said he considers Raman intelligent and wants to give her an opportunity.
Mohiuddin, a Muslim and Canadian immigrant, pointed to immigration raids and public denunciations of immigrants. He said he has been impressed by Raman’s outreach to minority communities and wants a mayor who will protect him.
Bass campaign leans on safety record and allies
Bass described her closing schedule in blunt terms: “Voters, voters, voters, voters. And that’s what I’ve been doing…I’m just exhausted.”
On the final Saturday before the election, Bass appeared with developer Rick Caruso, held a labor rally in Westlake and toured small businesses in Boyle Heights with state Sen. María Elena Durazo, according to initial reports. Caruso said Oct. 26 that he would cast his ballot for the mayor, using the words “I will be casting my ballot for Mayor Karen Bass.”
Caruso also called Raman’s plans for the Los Angeles Police Department “reckless and dangerous.” The Bass campaign has attacked Raman for her earlier support of defunding the police.
Raman campaign courts workers and neighborhoods
Raman said the weekend push was meant to spread her campaign across the city: “This movement is reaching every corner of Los Angeles, and this weekend, we’re taking that energy all over this city.”
On Saturday she attended a Halloween block party in the San Fernando Valley and an event with Unite Here Local 11 workers downtown. Her schedule for Sunday included a church service in Boyle Heights and door-knocking in Northridge.
Supervisor Lindsey Horvath endorsed Raman on Oct. 20 at a campaign event in downtown Los Angeles, and she is the only county supervisor to do so. Raman has also held news conferences at the headquarters of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power on electric bills and at Los Angeles International Airport on SkyLink delays and cost overruns.
Homelessness count frames the argument
The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority released the results of the 2026 Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count on July 24. The count found a 3.4% increase to an estimated 45,194 people in the City of Los Angeles and a 1.2% increase to an estimated 73,040 people in Los Angeles County, according to LAHSA.
Unsheltered homelessness in the city rose 7.9% to an estimated 29,115 people. LAHSA said neither change is considered statistically significant and tied the rise to reduced Time Limited Subsidy placements.
In a statement on the count, Bass said the city has reduced homelessness by 11% since 2023 and cited federal and state funding cuts for the 2026 increase. The statement also says Inside Safe has moved about 6,000 people off the streets.
Raman’s office said in a news release that homelessness rose slightly citywide while Council District 4 recorded significant decreases in unsheltered homelessness. Raman has said she cut unsheltered homelessness in her district by nearly 50%, from 181 people to 93, and she criticizes the cost of Bass’s Inside Safe program.
Public safety and the LAPD chief
Bass held a news conference Oct. 22 at the Van Nuys Community Police Station with Councilmembers John Lee and Imelda Padilla, LAPD officers and community leaders. In a news release, her office said homicides fell 47%, or 161 fewer, and victims shot fell 50%, or 573 fewer, from Oct. 22, 2022, to Oct. 22, 2026.
The release also says gang-related homicides have dropped by more than 50% citywide since 2022. Raman accused Bass of taking credit for a national trend.
Raman has said she would replace LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell. A mayor needs Police Commission support to make that change, and Raman has called for a careful, orderly transition.
Former LAPD Chief William Bratton has warned that ousting McDonnell could trigger an exodus of officers and complicate security for the 2028 Olympics.
Endorsements and outside spending
According to initial reports, Bass has the backing of most major labor unions, the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, the Los Angeles Police Protective League and 13 City Council members. Raman is backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, Controller Kenneth Mejia, Progressive LA, Unite Here Local 11 and Horvath.
Outside groups have also spent nearly $12.5 million trying to elect Raman, including $7.6 million on ads, phone banking and mailers, according to initial reports.
Poll shows movement among voter groups
The Oct. 28 poll found notable shifts from September, when the same survey had Raman ahead. Black likely voters now back Bass 71% to 13%, up from 48% to 20% in September.
Among voters who supported Republican Spencer Pratt in the June primary, Bass rose to 41% and Raman fell to 14%, with 45% undecided.
Ethics complaints over AI-generated voice
Raman’s campaign filed complaints Oct. 26 with the California Fair Political Practices Commission and the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission against Thrive LA PAC, a super PAC backing Bass. The complaints concern an AI-generated voice posing as Raman.
The PAC had set up a phone line called “Nithya Raman Realty,” and its director, Ana Dahan, called it political satire. The Bass campaign said the mayor had no involvement.
Vote centers open through Election Day
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean C. Logan announced that 123 vote centers would open Saturday, Oct. 24, for the Nov. 3 general election. Centers are open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. during early voting and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day.
Eligible voters who have not yet registered can visit any vote center, complete a conditional voter registration and cast a ballot. More than 400 official ballot drop boxes are also available across the county.
Results are not final on election night
The county’s election results page states that “Election results are not final on Election Night.” Ballot counting and verification continue during the official canvass. Vote-by-mail ballots returned by Election Day and received within seven days afterward, along with conditional registration and provisional ballots, may be counted after Election Day.
The registrar says every vote-by-mail ballot undergoes signature verification before it is counted, according to a county release on election safeguards. The mayor serves a four-year term limited to two terms, and the winner will be determined once the canvass is complete.
