Angelenos react to Nithya Raman surging past Spencer Pratt in battle for No. 2 spot in LA mayor's race
Nithya Raman surges past Spencer Pratt
Nithya Raman surged past Spencer Pratt to secure the No. 2 spot needed to face incumbent Karen Bass in the Nov. 2026 general election in the race for Los Angeles mayor. Bass is projected to finish No. 1 in the June California primary as Raman pushed Pratt to No. 3.
A major shift is underway in the race for Los Angeles mayor as mail-in ballots continue to be counted.
The Associated Press is now projecting City Councilwoman Nithya Raman will advance to the November runoff against incumbent Mayor Karen Bass after moving ahead of former reality TV star Spencer Pratt in updated vote totals.
The latest count marks a dramatic reversal from election night, when Pratt held a lead of roughly 40,000 votes over Raman.
After nearly a week of ballot counting, Raman has now gained approximately 60,000 votes on Pratt and leads by more than 21,000 votes, according to Monday’s updated results.
Pratt supporters in West Los Angeles expressed frustration and confusion as the race shifted.
"Unfortunately, I’m not that happy. I feel like it’s all set up," voter Alex Hemmat said.
Another voter, Cort Wagner, questioned confidence in the process.
"If Spencer lost or won, let’s prove it," Wagner said. "If Nithya had a late rally and it’s actually a bona fide rally with real-live bodies that really voted, fantastic. We have an opportunity here to validate votes."
Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan has defended the integrity of the election process, saying it includes multiple safeguards such as chain of custody and public observation.
Meanwhile, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli is leading a federal review into California’s election procedures. Essayli has criticized the state’s system, saying it does not inspire public confidence.
"If you were designing an election system and you want people to have faith in it, you would do everything opposite of what California does," Essayli said.
Raman told FOX 11 she is "incredibly honored" by the results and called on supporters to join her campaign for change.
"If you’re as frustrated by the broken status quo as I am, I hope you’ll join our movement to build a city that works for everyone," Raman said.
Pratt, before Monday’s ballot drop, posted on social media that hundreds of thousands of votes remained outstanding and counting was still underway.
As the count continues, some voters say they are now weighing a potential November matchup between Bass and Raman.
"I’m going to vote Raman," one Pratt voter said. "Anything but Bass."
"If Bass could actually convince me that there will be some efficacy in the next four years of real change and safety, I’d vote for Bass," Wagner said.
"We don’t want Basura anymore," Hemmat said. "We need major change."
According to election officials, the race is now about 92% counted, with roughly 60,000 ballots still left to process.