LA Mayoral Race Bombshell: Socialist-Backed Raman Surges as Pratt’s Lead Evaporates
Reality TV star Spencer Pratt’s once-commanding lead in Los Angeles’s mayoral race is crumbling as Democratic Socialists of America-backed Councilwoman Nithya Raman slashed his advantage by 13,000 votes in Friday’s ballot drop—setting up what could become a far-left takeover of America’s second-largest city.
The dramatic shift represents more than just campaign horse-race dynamics. It poses a fundamental question about Los Angeles’s future: Will voters hand control of city government to a single radical political movement that has already captured key positions across municipal leadership?
Mayor Karen Bass maintains her first-place position with 35% of the vote. But the real story is unfolding in the battle for second place and the November runoff spot.
Pratt now clings to 28.4% support—down from 29.35% Thursday—adding just 10,651 votes in the latest count. Meanwhile, Raman surged from 23.42% to 24.89%, picking up 23,115 votes and maintaining striking distance with hundreds of thousands of ballots still uncounted. Only 71% of mayoral votes have been tallied.
The Friday numbers tell a stark story: Bass leads with 215,868 votes, followed by Pratt at 174,260 and Raman at 153,588.
The Socialist Question Nobody’s Asking
“Barring some mathematical surprise, today’s results suggest that Nithya Raman is likely headed to the runoff,” longtime political strategist Michael Trujillo acknowledged.
But Trujillo raised the issue establishment Democrats would prefer to ignore: “The larger question people should start asking is whether Los Angeles wants a Democratic Socialists of America-backed controller, city attorney and mayor. Is the city ready for that level of influence from a single political movement?”
The answer to that question matters far beyond Los Angeles. If DSA-backed candidates sweep LA’s top offices, it would represent the most significant socialist electoral victory in modern American history—transforming a major metropolitan area into a laboratory for far-left governance.
Trujillo pointed to a tactical advantage that could decide the race: “One factor to watch is the late vote. Younger voters have tended to cast their ballots later for decades, and DSA-backed candidates have been particularly effective at organizing and turning out that demographic.”
Not Over Yet—But Close
Political strategist Rick Taylor urged caution about declaring Pratt finished, even as he acknowledged Raman’s momentum.
“No one knows. We’re all playing second guessers right now without having all the ballots,” Taylor said. “If I were on the Raman team, I’d feel good today. I wouldn’t feel confident yet.”
Still, Taylor couldn’t downplay the significance of Friday’s results: “When you outperform your opponent two to one, that’s a huge pickup.”
That two-to-one advantage in a single ballot drop represents exactly the kind of late-game surge that wins close elections. And with Bass already pivoting toward November, the socialist councilwoman appears positioned to join her in the runoff.
Statewide Chaos: Governor’s Race Flips
The mayoral uncertainty mirrors statewide turbulence as former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra overtook Republican Steve Hilton for the top spot in California’s gubernatorial contest.
Becerra climbed to 26.6% while Hilton slipped to 26.4%—a razor-thin margin that could shift with each new ballot dump. Billionaire businessman Tom Steyer remains within striking distance at 21.01%.
The current standings show Becerra at 1,698,049 votes, Hilton at 1,673,564, and Steyer at 1,334,592. With hundreds of thousands of ballots outstanding, any of these candidates could still claim second place and advance to November.
Federal Scrutiny Intensifies
California’s glacial vote-counting process is now drawing federal attention—and not the kind state officials welcome.
U.S. Attorney Robert Renner toured Los Angeles County’s ballot processing facility Friday amid mounting questions about processing speeds and the massive backlog leaving hundreds of thousands of ballots uncounted days after election day.
The visit followed U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli’s announcement that his office is pursuing multiple election-fraud investigations in coordination with the FBI and Department of Justice. The scrutiny comes as California’s prolonged counting process faces unprecedented criticism.
Renner’s inspection came after reports revealed large sections of LA County’s 144,000-square-foot ballot processing facility sitting unused despite the substantial backlog—raising obvious questions about whether officials are prioritizing efficiency or enabling continued delays.
The Vote-By-Mail Disaster
Taylor identified the core problem plaguing California elections: a vote-by-mail system that promised convenience but delivered chaos.
“What are we going to do to make elections better?” Taylor asked. “Has vote-by-mail turned out more voters, or has it just become a lengthier, more complicated process? Is there a middle ground where people can still vote easily and we get results in a timely fashion?”
Those questions cut to the heart of election integrity debates nationwide. When Americans go to bed on election night without knowing who won major races—and wake up days later to see leads evaporate and outcomes reverse—confidence in democratic processes erodes.
California’s system demonstrates how progressive election “reforms” create opportunities for exactly the kind of irregularities and extended timelines that fuel legitimate concerns about electoral fairness.
What Happens Next
Another ballot drop is scheduled for Saturday between 4-5 p.m., which could further clarify the mayoral race or deepen the uncertainty.
For Pratt supporters, the mathematics are straightforward but daunting: He needs the remaining ballots to break more favorably than Friday’s batch, which favored Raman by more than two-to-one.
For Raman’s DSA backers, the path is clear: Maintain the current trajectory through the remaining ballot counts and position for a November runoff that would pit socialist politics against establishment Democratic governance.
For Los Angeles voters watching this unfold, the stakes couldn’t be higher. This election will determine whether America’s entertainment capital embraces a radical political transformation or pulls back from the precipice.
The answer arrives one agonizingly slow ballot drop at a time.
