Marissa Roy surges to early lead over John McKinney in L.A. city attorney race

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Set us as preferred Marissa Roy is on track to become Los Angeles’ next city attorney after jumping out to a significant lead over L.A.County prosecutor John McKinney based on early returns.

Roy, 34, a deputy state attorney general, campaigned on a promise to convert the city attorney’s office into a massive “public interest law firm,” vowing to champion renters and defend Angelenos from an increasingly hostile White House.The bubbly coalition-builder had long been the favorite in the race, leading McKinney by double digits in polls leading up to Tuesday.

She won the June primary with more than 40% of the vote.Roy and McKinney’s head-to-head race came after voters and powerful city unions turned on the incumbent, Hydee Feldstein Soto, whose June primary defeat marked the first time a sitting L.A.

elected official failed to advance to a general election in nearly a century.Supporters at Roy’s watch party at the downtown Audio Graph brewery erupted in cheers when the first batch of results dropped, showing Roy doubling up McKinney’s early vote total.

The mood was ebullient as the first batch of returns trickled in, buoyed by dramatic wins for Democrats across the country and a better than expected early lead for their candidate.Although Roy and McKinney are both progressive Democrats, Roy ran to the left of her opponent and tried to paint him as the preferred choice of Republicans in L.A.

County.McKinney is a lifelong Democrat and has been critical of President Trump.At Hill Street bar, close to the downtown criminal courthouse where McKinney has built his career, supporters swayed to smooth jazz and nursed cocktails, betraying no reaction.

McKinney and Roy were both expected to speak by 9 p.m.The candidates were a study in contrasts: Roy is a stylish progressive with savvy social media campaign videos, while ...