Raman tops Pratt in battle to face Bass for LA mayor; outcome of California governor's race remains elusive
Nithya Raman overtook Spencer Pratt to advance to the Los Angeles mayoral runoff against Karen Bass. California’s governor’s race also stayed undecided as vote counting continued.
Intelligence analysis by GPT-5.4 Mini
Los Angeles’ mayoral race shifted again as Nithya Raman edged past Spencer Pratt and CBS News projected her to face Mayor Karen Bass in November. In California’s governor primary, Xavier Becerra held a lead in the top-two race while the rest of the field waited for more ballots to be counted.
It is like a race where the finish line keeps moving because more mail-in votes are still being opened. In Los Angeles, Nithya Raman passed Spencer Pratt and will face Karen Bass. In California’s governor race, people are still waiting for all the votes to be counted.
Analysis
Los Angeles mayoral race
Los Angeles City Councilwoman Nithya Raman moved ahead of reality TV star Spencer Pratt in the race to reach the general election against Mayor Karen Bass. Raman had trailed by about six percentage points earlier, but the margin flipped to less than one point as late county updates came in. CBS News projected Raman would advance after she gained more than 33,000 votes in the daily Los Angeles County polling update.
Bass was already projected to make the runoff last week. By Monday night, Bass had just over 34% of the vote, with Raman at 28.5% and Pratt at 25.8%, according to the article.
Raman thanked supporters in a statement to CBS LA after being projected to advance. Pratt, meanwhile, said on social media that the late vote changes were suspicious and told supporters there were still hundreds of thousands of ballots outstanding.
Governor primary still unresolved
The state’s race to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom remained unsettled as counties kept counting votes. CBS News had projected Xavier Becerra, the former U.S. Health and Human Services secretary, to advance to the general election. Republican Steve Hilton stayed in second for a time, but billionaire Tom Steyer gained ground and closed the gap.
Under California’s top-two primary system, the two highest vote-getters move on regardless of party. The article notes that if Becerra wins in November, he would be California’s first Latino governor since 1875.
Counting timeline
The article says counties have 30 days to count ballots provisionally. Mail ballots can still be counted if postmarked by Election Day and received within seven days, which explains why several major counties were still updating results.
Key points
- Nithya Raman moved ahead of Spencer Pratt and was projected to face Karen Bass in the Los Angeles mayoral runoff.
- Raman’s lead was razor-thin and changed as Los Angeles County kept updating results.
- California’s governor primary remained undecided while counties continued counting ballots.
- CBS News projected Xavier Becerra to advance, while Steve Hilton and Tom Steyer battled for the other spot.
- California counties have up to 30 days to count provisional ballots, and late mail ballots can still be accepted if they meet the deadline.
If the count continues normally, the final results will give voters a clear runoff matchup in Los Angeles and a settled field for the governor’s race. The process could also reinforce trust that every valid ballot is counted, even if it takes time.
The prolonged count leaves both races in limbo and can fuel doubt or frustration among candidates and supporters. If margins stay very close, disputes over late-counted ballots could keep the political fight going even after the updates finish.
