LOS ANGELES — Mayor Karen Bass and Councilwoman Nithya Raman, both Democrats, advanced to the general election in the city’s mayoral race on Tuesday, setting up a clash between one-time political allies and ending the hopes of reality TV star Spencer Pratt.With roughly 93% of the vote counted, Bass and Raman led a crowded 14-candidate field with about 34.3% and 28.6%, respectively, according to the Associated Press, concluding a race that drew allegations of voter fraud from President Donald Trump as mail-in ballots were counted for days after the election. Under California’s jungle primary system, the top two finishers advance to the Nov. 3 runoff if no candidate wins a majority outright.
Trump railed as results came in over the weekend that showed Raman surpassing Pratt, whom the president had supported, calling the election “rigged.”
“No way this could have happened. Rigged Election!” the president wrote in a post to Truth Social early Monday.
Bass enters the general election with vulnerabilities. Despite decades in public office, including service in the state legislature and more than a decade in Congress, she has framed her reelection bid as a call for continued change, arguing she needs more time to address the city’s problems.
