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Bass and Raman face off in only televised mayoral debate
In Tuesday night's only televised debate before Election Day, once political allies, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilmember Nithya Raman called
Updated Oct 16, 2026, 2:34 PM ET
Karen Bass, a Democrat who has been mayor of Los Angeles since 2022 after serving in Congress from 2011 to 2022, faces city councilmember Nithya Raman in the 2026 mayoral runoff.
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Recent media coverage for Karen Bass.
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LA mayor candidates Karen Bass, Nithya Raman to appear in back-to-back forums
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilmember Nithya Raman will make their cases to downtown Los Angeles residents Thursday night during separate, back-to-back mayoral candidate forums, two days after trading…
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Voters have been good to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. For the past two decades, she has won elections to the California Assembly, to Congress and to the mayoralty she now holds. She has never lost an election.
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Kerala-born Nithya Raman is leading incumbent Mayor Karen Bass in the Los Angeles mayoral race after a fiery televised debate on Tuesday night.
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Candidates clash in final debate for L.A. mayor - Beverly Press & Park Labrea NewsBeverly Press & Park Labrea News
Mayor Karen Bass and Los Angeles City Councilwoman Nithya Raman faced off on Oct. 13 in the last scheduled debate before the Nov. 3 election.
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Karen Bass apologizes for wildfire absence
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass expressed regret for being away from her city during the massive January 2025 wildfires in Southern California, apologizing to voters for her absence while debating her mayoral race opponent…
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Commentary: Karen Bass says L.A.'s political establishment doesn't like Raman. Well, boo hoo - Los Angeles Times
Because she was: a Black woman in a realm not meant for people like her. She was someone who co-founded a pioneering nonprofit in the crucible of a changing South L.A.
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Karen Bass, Nithya Raman clash in final Los Angeles mayoral debate
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilwoman Nithya Raman squared off in a contentious final debate before the November election.
No story this week names this candidate.
- Born
- October 3, 1953
- Birthplace
- Los Angeles, California
- Education
- Alexander Hamilton High School (1971)
San Diego State University (philosophy studies, 1971 to 1973)
USC Keck School of Medicine (physician assistant program, 1982)
California State University, Dominguez Hills (Bachelor of Science in health sciences, 1990)
USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work (Master of Social Work, 2015)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Karen Ruth Bass was born on October 3, 1953, in Los Angeles, and grew up in the city's Venice and Fairfax neighborhoods.
After graduating from Alexander Hamilton High School in 1971, she took philosophy courses at San Diego State University between 1971 and 1973, trained as a physician assistant at the USC Keck School of Medicine, finishing in 1982, and earned a Bachelor of Science from California State University, Dominguez Hills, in 1990, majoring in health sciences; in 2015, while in Congress, she added a Master of Social Work from USC.
In the 1980s she practiced emergency medicine as a physician assistant, and late in the decade she helped found Community Coalition, a grassroots organization in South Los Angeles.
Career
Bass won election to the California State Assembly from the 47th district in 2004 and was reelected in 2006 and 2008. After serving as majority whip and majority floor leader, she was sworn in as the Assembly's 67th speaker on May 13, 2008, making her the first African American woman to lead a state legislative chamber in U.S. history.
In 2010 she won California's 33rd congressional district with more than 86% of the vote, and after redistricting in 2012 she represented the 37th district, winning each subsequent election through 2020. She led the Congressional Black Caucus as chair from 2019 to 2021.
Bass entered the 2022 race for mayor of Los Angeles on September 27, 2021, led the June 7 primary and defeated Rick Caruso in the November runoff. She took office on December 12, 2022, as the 43rd mayor and the first woman to hold the post.
2026 race
Bass announced in July 2024 that she would seek reelection.
In the nonpartisan top-two primary held on June 2, 2026, she finished first, and city councilmember Nithya Raman, who represents the 4th district, overtook Republican reality television personality Spencer Pratt during the count to take the second runoff place.
Bass and Raman are both Democrats, and Raman belongs to the Democratic Socialists of America; its Los Angeles chapter backed her candidacy on September 2. The runoff takes place on November 3, 2026.