Indian-American Nithya Raman Edges Ahead in LA Mayor Race for Second Spot

Indian-American Nithya Raman is narrowly leading the race for the second spot in the Los Angeles Mayor elections scheduled for November, after a vote update on Sunday evening (local time), CNN reported.

As per CNN, Raman won about 40% of the nearly 48,000 votes Los Angeles County reported Sunday, thus winning 10,000 votes more than Pratt and leaving her about 3,000 votes ahead.

Across all votes reported in the June 2 primary since the close of election night counting, Raman has outperformed both Karen Bass and Spencer Pratt, gaining 43,000 votes on Pratt and increasing her overall share of the vote by about 5 points.

According to CNN, reports this weekend were her strongest of the contest, with Raman winning about 40% of each batch and Pratt around 18%.

While the race is officially nonpartisan, Pratt is a registered Republican while Raman has campaigned as a progressive as per CNN.

How does the California mail-in system impact Nithya Raman’s Los Angeles mayor race?

The outlet reported that California elections often take several days to resolve--as it runs a largely mail-in election in which properly postmarked ballots received up to seven days after Election Day can be counted.

Nithya Raman- the Los Angeles City Council member is an urban planner, and a graduate of Harvard and MIT, representing District 4.

Her official website notes that she ran for City Council in 2020 and won a historic victory, becoming the first Asian-American woman and the first South Asian ever to serve on the City Council. In March 2024, she was decisively elected to a second term.

ABC News reported Raman was also the first challenger in 17 years to defeat a sitting councilmember.

Since taking office, Raman has prioritized delivering services for people experiencing homelessness, building affordable housing, and moving with greater urgency to meet our city's climate goals.

(With inputs from ANI)