By Gloria Ogbonna
The race for Los Angeles mayor is taking shape as incumbent mayor Karen Bass and City Councilmember Nithya Raman are now projected to advance to the November runoff election, while reality television personality Spencer Pratt has fallen to third place after initially holding a strong position on election night.
Decision Desk HQ officially projected on Sunday that Raman had secured the second spot in the nonpartisan primary, setting up a highly anticipated head-to-head contest with Bass later this year. With approximately 87 percent of ballots counted, Bass led the field with 34.68 percent of the vote, while Raman captured 27.12 percent.
Pratt, who emerged as one of the race’s biggest surprises, received 26.69 percent of the vote. Although he held second place for several days following Election Day and at one point appeared positioned to secure a spot in the runoff, his advantage steadily diminished as additional mail-in ballots were processed and counted throughout the week.
Bass had already secured her place in the runoff shortly after the June 2 primary results began coming in, leaving the battle for second place between Raman and Pratt. As more votes were added to the tally, Raman gradually overtook Pratt and widened her lead enough for election analysts to project her advancement to the general election.
The outcome represents a significant victory for Raman, who has built a strong political profile in Los Angeles through her work on housing, homelessness, and city governance issues. Her runoff matchup with Bass will now give voters a choice between the incumbent mayor and one of the city’s most prominent progressive leaders.
Despite the projections, Pratt has not conceded the race and continues to argue that additional ballots could still affect the final outcome. On Sunday, he encouraged supporters to remain patient as election officials continue processing outstanding votes.
“Remember everyone… we are still in the lead, and we’ve got allllllll the way til July 6th to keep counting. They’re not the only ones who know where to find votes,” Pratt wrote on social media.
His comments reflect the lengthy vote-counting process that is common in California elections, where a large percentage of voters cast ballots by mail. State election laws allow properly postmarked mail ballots to be counted even if they arrive several days after Election Day, often delaying final results in close races.
Political analysts note that California’s vote-counting process frequently leads to significant shifts in standings after election night. Early returns often consist of in-person votes and ballots received before Election Day, while later counts typically include a larger share of mail-in ballots submitted closer to the deadline.
According to CNN, California elections can take several days or even weeks to fully resolve because of the state’s extensive mail-voting system and rigorous ballot verification procedures. The network also noted that ballots counted after election night have historically tended to favor Democratic candidates, contributing to changes in close races as additional votes are tabulated.
Although the Los Angeles mayoral race is officially nonpartisan, party affiliations have played a noticeable role in the campaign. Both Bass and Raman are registered Democrats and have attracted support from many of the city’s progressive and Democratic-leaning voters. Pratt, meanwhile, is a registered Republican and entered the race as a political outsider with significant name recognition from his television career.
Pratt’s campaign generated substantial attention throughout the election cycle, drawing support from voters seeking an alternative to traditional political figures. His strong performance surprised many political observers and demonstrated the appeal of celebrity candidates in one of the nation’s largest cities.
Still, as vote totals continued to evolve during the week, Raman’s support grew steadily enough to move ahead of Pratt and secure what appears to be a place in the November runoff.
The upcoming general election is expected to focus heavily on some of Los Angeles’ most pressing challenges, including homelessness, public safety, housing affordability, transportation, and economic development. Bass will be seeking a second term and is likely to campaign on her administration’s efforts to address these issues, while Raman is expected to present herself as a candidate offering a new direction for City Hall.
With several months remaining before the November election, both campaigns are preparing for what could become one of the most closely watched mayoral contests in the country. While final vote counts are still being completed, the political landscape now points toward a showdown between Karen Bass and Nithya Raman as Los Angeles voters prepare to choose their next mayor.
Election officials are expected to continue counting outstanding ballots over the coming weeks, but barring a dramatic shift in the remaining vote totals, the runoff race appears set, marking the next chapter in the battle for leadership of America’s second-largest city.
Source Breitbart
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