Bass leads Pratt and Raman in the battle for Los Angeles mayor, early returns show

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Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, whose standing with voters took a huge hit in the wake of the Palisades fire, was pulling ahead of her two main challengers, reality TV personality Spencer Pratt and City Councilmember Nithya Raman on Tuesday, according to early election returns.Pratt was in second place, while Raman was in third, those returns showed.The top two vote-getters from Tuesday’s primary will advance to a Nov.

3 runoff.Polls closed at 8 p.m., but ballot counting is expected to take several weeks, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office.Bass, a former legislator who served in Sacramento and Washington, is in the biggest fight of her political career, campaigning for reelection amid widespread voter discontent.

Although the race is nonpartisan, the pro-labor, establishment Democrat has been squeezed from each end of the political spectrum.Pratt, a Republican, has been winning over conservative voters as he depicts L.A.’s citizenry as under threat from drug-addicted homeless “zombies.” He made crime a central issue in his campaign, promising voters he would enforce more of the city’s laws.Raman, a democratic socialist, has been railing at Bass for giving police officers an expensive package of raises, saying those personnel costs have “bankrupted the city.” She also promised to ramp up the production of apartments, including in single-family neighborhoods, in a bid to bring down rental costs.California Follow live updates, analysis and highlights from 2026 election day’s key races, such as California governor, Los Angeles mayor, L.A.

city council and more.Pratt’s celebrity, along with his media savvy and message, transformed the contest into a national story.Pratt became a fixture on cable news, and his candidacy also fueled interest from Us Weekly, TMZ and other entertainment outlets.Also competing for votes were com...