It’s official: Los Angeles mayoral candidates U.S. Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) and billionaire Rick Caruso will top the local ballot in the Nov. 8 general election.
The list of candidates for the election was finalized by the Los Angeles city clerk on July 29.
In California’s jungle primary system, only the top two candidates advance to the general election regardless of party affiliation.
L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti, a well-known progressive Democratic Party member, couldn’t seek re-election due to term limits.
While the office of mayor is officially nonpartisan, Bass is also a progressive Democrat who has served six terms in Congress and is endorsed by several prominent party leaders, including California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, along with a number of Democratic organizations and labor unions.
Bass was elected chair of the Congressional Black Caucus in 2019 and also chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, and Global Human Rights. While Kamala Harris was chosen to become Joe Biden’s running mate in the 2020 election, Bass was on the shortlist.
Meanwhile, Caruso, a wealthy real estate developer, was a registered Republican for most of his life. In the past decade, he switched back and forth from Republican to “No Party Preference,” however, in January, less than a month before filing to run in this year’s election, he switched his party affiliation to the Democratic Party.
“While most mayoral elections in the 100 largest U.S. cities are nonpartisan, most officeholders are affiliated with a political party,” according to Ballotpedia.
Currently, “62 mayors in the largest 100 cities by population are affiliated with the Democratic Party, 25 are affiliated with the Republican Party, four are independents, seven identify as nonpartisan or unaffiliated, and two mayors’ affiliations are unknown.”
Los Angeles City Council
- District 5: Katy Young Yaroslavsky, an environmental attorney and parent versus Sam Yebri, a nonprofit director and business owner.
- District 11: Traci Park, a municipal law attorney versus Erin Darling, a civil rights attorney.
- District 13: Hugo Soto-Martinez, a labor community organizer versus Mitch O’Farrell, a Los Angeles city councilor.
- District 15: Danielle Sandoval, an entrepreneur and community leader versus Tim McOsker, a businessman and nonprofit director.
City Attorney
- Hydee Feldstein Soto, an attorney and neighborhood council member versus Faisal Gill, a civil rights attorney.
City Controller
- Paul Koretz, a Los Angeles city councilor versus Kenneth Mejia, a certified public accountant.
School Board
- District 2: Rocio Rivas, an education policy adviser versus Maria Brenes, and education advocate and parent.
- District 6: Kelly Gonez, a school board member and educator versus Marvin Rodriguez, a teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School Board District and parent.
