Just a week ago, the Democratic Socialists of America threatened to expel Nithya Raman from its ranks because she would not explicitly commit to a boycott of Israel. Now the 45-year-old Democrat is the mayor-elect of Los Angeles, America's second-largest city and home to one of the world's largest Jewish communities.
NBC News projected Thursday that Raman had defeated incumbent Mayor Karen Bass. Born in India and brought to the United States at age six, Raman previously accused Israel of committing "genocide" in Gaza and operating an "apartheid state."
Raman's victory marks another significant win for the American socialist left in an election that saw progressive forces gain strength across the country. According to the latest count, Raman received approximately 52.1% of the vote, compared with 47.9% for Bass, a margin of about 35,000 votes. Bass initially led on election night, but the picture shifted as counting progressed, partly reflecting support for Raman among younger voters, who were more likely to cast ballots on Election Day rather than vote early.
Reacting to her victory Thursday evening, Raman said: "It is an enormous honor to be your next mayor." She paid tribute to Bass, saying her opponent had "dedicated decades of her life to the city." Bass conceded defeat, saying: "This is not the result we had hoped for, but the people of Los Angeles have spoken." She said she had called Raman to congratulate her and promised a smooth transition. In her statement, Bass also criticized President Donald Trump, accusing him of sending federal forces into Los Angeles "to spread fear and intimidation."
It is the first time in 21 years that a sitting Los Angeles mayor has lost a reelection bid. The upset followed months in which Bass was considered particularly vulnerable, although polls in the final weeks of the campaign struggled to separate the two candidates. Bass, 73, a former congresswoman and the first Black woman to serve as Los Angeles mayor, entered the race with the backing of the Democratic establishment, including Kamala Harris, Nancy Pelosi and California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Even all 14 of Raman's fellow City Council members endorsed Bass.
But public patience had worn thin. The devastating wildfires of January 2025, which destroyed parts of Pacific Palisades and left hundreds of Jewish families among those who lost their homes, became a symbol of Bass' perceived failures. She was in Ghana on an official visit as part of a U.S. delegation attending the country's presidential inauguration and remained outside Los Angeles for more than 24 hours after the fires began. Her decision to travel despite earlier warnings about wildfire risks sparked public outrage, and she later acknowledged that the trip had been a mistake.
Karen Bass
(Photo: AP)
The city's soaring housing costs, streets lined with homeless encampments and a growing perception that City Hall had lost control added to the frustration. Criticism also accumulated within the Jewish community over Bass' response to pro-Palestinian demonstrations and violent confrontations at UCLA and outside the Adas Torah synagogue in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood, where police subsequently acknowledged that they had not been adequately prepared.
Raman seized on that discontent. In February, on the final day for filing candidacies, she announced a surprise challenge against Bass, whom she had previously supported. She promised to cut the number of people living on the streets in half by the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, accelerate housing construction and make the city more affordable for middle-class residents. She also pledged to remove Police Chief Jim McDonnell, partly over his department's handling of immigration enforcement raids by the Trump administration's Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. The police officers' union warned that her election could trigger a mass departure of officers and lead to "Armageddon" in the city.
Raman was born in Kerala, India, and moved to the United States with her family at age six. She studied at Harvard and MIT, later returned to India to work with residents of impoverished neighborhoods and subsequently founded an organization helping homeless people in Los Angeles. In 2020, she unseated an incumbent City Council member, becoming the first woman of South Asian descent elected to the council. She lives in Silver Lake with her husband, a screenwriter who worked on the television comedies 30 Rock and Modern Family, and their twins.
Nithya Raman
(Photo: ETIENNE LAURENT / AFP)
The nickname "LA's Mamdani" stuck because of Raman's affiliation with the Democratic Socialists of America, the organization that also helped propel New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani to power. But her relationship with the organization has been considerably more complicated. In 2020, Raman said she did not support a boycott of Israel and warned against demonizing Israel and Jews. Following the October 7 Hamas massacre, she was among the first City Council members to condemn Hamas and criticized a DSA statement for what she said was its lack of empathy toward Israeli victims. Since then, however, her positions have changed.
Jewish and Israeli communities in LA voice concern
In an earlier interview with anti-Israel streamer Hasan Piker, Raman described Israel as an "apartheid state" and its war in Gaza as "genocide." At a September meeting with hundreds of Jewish voters, she repeated the genocide accusation and described the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, or BDS, as a "legitimate form of nonviolent protest," drawing negative reactions from attendees. Raman sought to explain that she recognized Israel's right to exist and had no intention of promoting a boycott through City Hall, but many in the audience remained unconvinced. Bass, who appeared at the same forum, rejected the genocide accusations and pledged to oppose a municipal boycott.
Raman's position also placed her at odds with parts of the socialist movement. The Democratic Socialists of America's national leadership considered withdrawing its endorsement because she would not explicitly commit to supporting a boycott of Israel, creating an unusual confrontation between the organization and one of its most prominent electoral candidates.
The election result was received with concern among Israelis and Jews in Los Angeles. "Voters in the city now have the pleasure of choosing between the complete incompetence of Mayor Bass and the political radicalism of her challenger, Raman. Good luck to all of us," a Jewish Beverly Hills resident told ynet on the eve of the election.
Jewish community leaders have not spoken with one voice. Rabbi Noah Farkas, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles, said Raman's remarks about Israel had damaged the trust of many community members. Nevertheless, he made clear that the federation intends to work with the incoming mayor and demand that she protect Jewish and Israeli residents.
Liberal Jewish community organizations, meanwhile, expressed confidence in Raman. They pointed to her visits to synagogues on Shabbat and Yom Kippur and her efforts to promote community safety. For many Jewish residents, her first major test will be whether she can protect religious institutions and effectively confront antisemitism in the city.