Rep. Karen Bass and billionaire developer Rick Caruso will advance to a November runoff in the Los Angeles mayor’s race, according to projections by the Associated Press.
As of 10 p.m. Tuesday, Bass had received 37.83% of votes and Caruso received 41.18%, but since no candidate reached 50% of the vote, the top two are set to advance to a runoff in five months.
Councilman Kevin de León currently sits in third place with 7.18% of votes.
About 39% of precincts are reporting as of 10 p.m.
The race for mayor is to replace Eric Garcetti, who is termed out and waiting for confirmation of his appointment as U.S. ambassador to India. Much of the contest has focused on homelessness and crime, key issues Angelenos are facing.
Tuesday’s primary election results largely mirror poll findings from March and April that showed Bass and Caruso sharing the lead and on track for a runoff.
The field was crowded with 12 candidates on the ballot, though some — including high-profile candidates like L.A. City Attorney Mike Feuer and Councilman Joe Buscaino — dropped out ahead of Election Day.
Bass, 68, is a six-term Democratic congresswoman and an L.A. native who President Joe Biden was considering for vice president. In 2008, she became the first Black woman speaker of the state Assembly and later led the Congressional Black Caucus.
If Bass wins, she could become the first woman mayor of Los Angeles and the second Black person to hold the office.
Caruso, a Republican-turned-Democrat, is a billionaire real estate developer known for the Grove and Americana at Brand.
Caruso, 63, joined the race for mayor later than other candidates but pumped over $40 million into his own campaign, the Associated Press reported. His campaign spending totals more than all other candidates combined.
By comparison, the Bass campaign has spent about $3.3 million.
De León, who came in third place, is a prominent legislator who also ran for U.S. Senate, unsuccessfully challenging incumbent Dianne Feinstein in 2018.
