Angelenos who have not voted still have until this evening, Tuesday Nov. 8, to cast their vote for U.S. Rep. Karen Bass or real estate developer Rick Caruso to be the next mayor of Los Angeles.
Polls close at 8 p.m. The initial round of results, composed entirely of vote-by-mail ballots that arrived before Election Day, is expected shortly after. The Los Angeles County registrar’s office will then periodically update the results with more ballots — first those cast at Vote Centers before Tuesday, followed by those cast on Election Day — throughout the night.
Check back here for updates on the results of the mayoral race.
In the June primary, Bass was the frontrunner, receiving 43% of the vote to Caruso’s 36%, but recent polls suggest they’re now neck and neck.
A poll in mid-October conducted for Southern California News Group had Caruso leading by 3 percentage points among likely voters. Another poll conducted late in October by UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, and co-sponsored by the Los Angeles Times, showed Bass ahead by 4 percentage points among likely voters. Both results were within the polls’ margin of error.
Whoever wins will serve as the 43rd mayor of L.A., succeeding termed-out Mayor Eric Garcetti.
The Issues
With homelessness, the cost of living, public safety and political corruption top of mind for many Angelenos, the next person to lead the nation’s second-most populous city will have much to tackle.
In the final days of campaigning, both candidates highlighted their plans for addressing homelessness and housing affordability.
Bass has proposed housing more than 17,000 homeless individuals during her first year as mayor by creating new housing units and drawing upon existing ones to provide interim beds and permanent housing. She estimates the cost at $292 million the first year, reflecting capital and operational costs for interim housing, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Caruso has proposed adding 30,000 new shelter beds within 300 days in the form of tiny homes or sleeping pods housed within underutilized buildings such as warehouses, with walls as dividers between the pods. He told The Times it would cost $743 million to $874 million to build the units and said the county should pay ongoing operating expenses.
Both candidates support the City Council’s decision to ban homeless encampments within 500 feet of schools and daycare centers.
On the issue of public safety, Caruso has proposed hiring 1,500 more officers over two to three years and he said more respect needs to be shown to officers to entice people to join or remain in the Los Angeles Police Department.
Bass has proposed hiring more civilian officers to work desk jobs to free up at least 250 sworn officers to patrol the streets. She’s suggested increasing police presence “in neighborhoods and areas that want to have an increased presence.”
Their backgrounds
Both candidates believe their backgrounds and experiences make them best suited to serve as the next mayor of L.A.
Bass in 1990 founded Community Coalition — a South L.A. organization that addresses poverty, crime and violence — in response to the crack-cocaine epidemic of that era after she treated many victims of violent crimes as an emergency room physician’s assistant.
She served in the state Assembly from 2005 to 2010 and became the first Black woman in U.S. history to serve as speaker in a state legislature. Since 2011, she has served in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing parts of Los Angeles.
If elected, Bass, 69, would become the first woman mayor in L.A.’s history.
“In terms of why voters should vote for me, look at the problems L.A. is facing right now — homelessness, affordability, public safety and now potential racial (divisions),” Bass said in an interview last month. “We are in a crisis over race. If you look at those issues, I have the breadth and the experience in those issues.”
Caruso is a real estate billionaire best known for developing The Grove shopping mall in the Fairfax District, The Americana at Brand in Glendale and other high-end, luxury shopping centers and apartment buildings.
He twice served on the city’s Department of Water and Power Commission, once as the commission’s president, to help bring the department out of financial insolvency, and was appointed by Mayor James K. Hahn to the Police Commission in 2001 and served as its president.
On the Police Commission, he worked to reform the Los Angeles Police Department, led the selection effort to hire William Bratton as police chief and advocated for community policing. According to Caruso, the city saw a 30% drop in crime during his tenure on the commission.
“I have a proven track record of working for the city in multiple departments,” Caruso said in an October interview. “I understand how the city works. I have a proven track record of working in very large and complex organizations.”
At 63, Caruso is a political newcomer who has largely self-funded his campaign. Critics have accused Caruso of attempting to buy the election because of the more than $104 million his campaign has spent. Bass’ campaign has spent a fraction of that amount, according to campaign finance statements filed with the city’s Ethics Commission.
But Caruso says he’s not beholden to anyone. He’s portrayed Bass as too entrenched in the current political system and says Angelenos will wind up with the current status quo if Bass is elected.
With the support of many big-name politicians, including President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former President Barack Obama, Bass is viewed as the establishment candidate.
She doesn’t consider her years in elected office as a negative, saying she’ll tap into her existing relationships with county, state and federal officials to advocate on behalf of the city.
Attacking their opponent
Both candidates have criticized their opponent during the past months.
While framing herself as the only true and lifelong “pro-choice Democrat” in the race, Bass has sought to discredit Caruso’s allegiance to the Democratic Party, noting that he previously was a Republican and that he only registered as a Democrat weeks before announcing his candidacy.
She and her campaign have also stressed his past record of donating to candidates who oppose abortion rights.
Caruso has repeatedly said he’s pro-choice and that he left the Republican Party because it no longer reflected his values.
Caruso switched from Republican to “decline to state” in late 2011 as he mulled a run for mayor in 2013. He rejoined the Republican Party from 2016 to 2019 then switched to no party preference before registering as a Democrat early this year.
During a Sept. 21 mayoral debate, Caruso explained his switch back to the Republican Party in 2016, saying he supported John Kasich then, in hopes of thwarting Donald Trump from getting the GOP’s presidential nomination.
And during an Oct. 6 debate, he noted that some Republican governors recently placed immigrants on buses and planes to other cities, “using them as props” – a reference to actions taken in September by governors Ron DeSantis of Florida and Greg Abbott of Texas.
“I don’t want to be a part of that,” said Caruso, the grandson of Italian immigrants. “The Democratic Party that I care about, that I’m a part of, has a really big tent and accepts everybody. … We celebrate those that want to come into this country and just have their fair share of the American Dream. That’s why I’m a Democrat. And I’m a proud one at that.”
Caruso has also taken swipes at Bass, running an ad linking her to the controversial Church of Scientology for giving a speech at a 2010 ribbon cutting ceremony for the church’s new headquarters in L.A.
Bass said during the Oct. 6 debate that in retrospect she wouldn’t have gone to the ceremony.
“I certainly knew of some of Scientology’s abuses. I didn’t know the depth of them. I learned it later,” she said.
Both candidates have also gone after their opponent for their connections to two separate University of Southern California scandals.
Related Articles
Israeli PM Lapid concedes election to Netanyahu
Election 2022: Bob Hertzberg, Lindsey Horvath put abortion at forefront of LA County supervisor battle
LA City Council calls special election in April to replace Nury Martinez
Judge grants Gascón recall proponents expedited hearing
Right-wing operatives, including Jacob Wohl, plead guilty to robocall hoax
A close race
The race for mayor is expected to be a close one, and it’s unclear how long it will take after polls close tonight before the race is called – or whether Angelenos will have to wait days for enough votes to be tabulated before there is a clear winner.
Many voters have sent in or dropped off their vote-by-mail ballots or voted in person early. For those who haven’t, mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 8. Individuals can also vote in person at a Vote Center. For locations, visit locator.lavote.gov.
Related links
Karen Bass and Rick Caruso reach out to voters as Nov. 8 Election Day rushes closer
Election 2022: New poll shows LA mayoral candidates in dead heat
Karen Bass, Rick Caruso address LA City Hall scandal, call for unity in final mayoral debate
Karen Bass and Rick Caruso exchange accusations over different USC scandals they are linked to