Kerala-born politician Nithya Raman has been projected to win the Los Angeles mayoral race, defeating incumbent Karen Bass, according to Decision Desk HQ. The projection, reported by Bloomberg on November 5, marks a major milestone for the Indian-origin politician and Los Angeles politics.
Raman, a member of the Los Angeles City Council, secured 51.1% of the vote against Bass’s 48.9%, according to reported results. The vote count was still underway when the projection was announced.
Her victory is set to make her the first Asian American to become mayor of Los Angeles and only the second woman to hold the city’s top elected office. She will also become one of the prominent Indian-origin politicians leading a major American city.
Who Is Nithya Raman?
Born in Kerala in 1981, Raman moved to the United States with her family when she was six. She studied at Harvard University and later earned a master’s degree in urban planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Before entering politics, she worked on urban planning and civic issues, including sanitation and homelessness. She founded Transparent Chennai, an urban research initiative, and later co-founded the SELAH Neighborhood Homeless Coalition in Los Angeles.
Raman was first elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 2020 and secured re-election in 2024. Her political work has focused on housing, homelessness and improving public services.
A Close Contest Against Karen Bass
The mayoral contest saw Raman challenge Bass, who had been in office since December 2022. The two candidates were once political allies, but Raman entered the race in February 2026 after initially backing Bass for re-election.
The campaign focused on housing, homelessness, public safety and the delivery of basic city services. Bass faced criticism over the city’s response to the 2025 Palisades wildfire and persistent challenges involving homelessness and public infrastructure.
Raman’s projected victory makes her the first challenger to unseat an incumbent Los Angeles mayor since 2005. The result is based on a projection, with the official vote count and certification process still to be completed.
