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Mayoral election in Los Angeles, California (2022)
← 2017
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2022 Los Angeles elections |
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Election dates |
Filing deadline: March 9, 2022 |
Primary election: June 7, 2022 General election: November 8, 2022 |
Election stats |
Offices up: Mayor |
Total seats up: 1 (click here for other city elections) |
Election type: Nonpartisan |
Other municipal elections |
U.S. municipal elections, 2022 |
Karen Bass defeated Rick Caruso in the nonpartisan general election for mayor of Los Angeles, California, on November 8, 2022. The candidates advanced from the June 7 primary election since neither received 50% of the vote. Incumbent Mayor Eric Garcetti could not run for re-election due to term limits.
Bass was first elected to public office in 2004 to serve in the California State Assembly. She served in the Assembly from 2005 to 2010 and was speaker from 2008 to 2010. Bass was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2010 and represented California's 37th Congressional District at the time of the mayoral election.[1] In a campaign ad, Bass said, "I’m running for mayor to meet today’s challenges: crime, homelessness, and the soaring cost of housing."[2]
Caruso was the founder and chief executive officer of a retail complex development company.[3] He also served on Los Angeles’ Department of Water and Power Commission, as the president of Los Angeles’ Police Commission, and on the USC Board of Trustees.[4] In a campaign ad, Caruso said, "I’m running for mayor because the city we love is in a state of emergency: rampant homelessness, people living in fear for their safety, and politicians at city hall just in it for themselves."[5]
Though the election was officially nonpartisan, both candidates were registered Democrats. Caruso announced he changed his party registration from no party preference to Democrat in January 2022.[6] Bass had held elected office as a Democrat since 2005.
The New York Times' Jennifer Medina wrote that the race "has focused on voters’ worries about public safety and homelessness in the nation’s second-largest city" and could "become a test of whether voters this year favor an experienced politician who has spent nearly two decades in government or an outsider running on his business credentials."[7]
Speaking to Axios, Bass spokeswoman Anna Bahr said, "Voters have a choice in this race — between a billionaire real estate developer who has never built a single unit of affordable housing despite 50,000 people living on our streets, and a Black community organizer who has spent her life running toward this city's crises and solving them."[8]
Caruso Senior Advisor Peter Ragone said, "Los Angeles is in a crisis: Homeless, crime and corruption are uncontrolled. This is a moment for someone like Rick to come in and clean up City Hall."[8]
This was the first even-year election for Los Angeles mayor since the 2015 passage of Charter Amendment 1, which shifted city elections to even-numbered years beginning in 2020.
The city of Los Angeles uses a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body and the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.
Heading into 2022, the mayors of 63 of the country's 100 largest cities were affiliated with the Democratic Party. Republicans held 28 mayoral offices, independents held four, and five mayors were nonpartisan. One mayor's partisan affiliation was unknown. Heading into the election, Los Angeles had a Democratic mayor.
For coverage of the June 7, 2022, primary election, click here.
Election news
This section includes a timeline of events leading up to the election.
- November 17, 2022: The race was called for Bass.
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for Mayor of Los Angeles
Karen Bass defeated Rick J. Caruso in the general election for Mayor of Los Angeles on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | Karen Bass (Nonpartisan) | 54.8 | 509,944 | |
Rick J. Caruso (Nonpartisan) | 45.2 | 420,030 |
Total votes: 929,974 | ||||
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. |
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Los Angeles
The following candidates ran in the primary for Mayor of Los Angeles on June 7, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
✔ | Karen Bass (Nonpartisan) | 43.1 | 278,511 | |
✔ | Rick J. Caruso (Nonpartisan) | 36.0 | 232,490 | |
Kevin de León (Nonpartisan) | 7.8 | 50,372 | ||
Gina Viola (Nonpartisan) | 6.9 | 44,341 | ||
Mike Feuer (Nonpartisan) (Unofficially withdrew) | 1.9 | 12,087 | ||
Andrew Kim (Nonpartisan) | 1.5 | 9,405 | ||
Alex Gruenenfelder (Nonpartisan) | 1.0 | 6,153 | ||
Joe Buscaino (Nonpartisan) (Unofficially withdrew) | 0.7 | 4,485 | ||
Craig E. Greiwe (Nonpartisan) | 0.4 | 2,439 | ||
Mel Wilson (Nonpartisan) | 0.4 | 2,336 | ||
Ramit Varma (Nonpartisan) | 0.3 | 1,916 | ||
John Jackson (Nonpartisan) | 0.2 | 1,511 |
Total votes: 646,046 | ||||
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Voting information
- See also: Voting in California
Candidate comparison
Candidate profiles
This section includes candidate profiles that may be created in one of two ways: either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, or Ballotpedia staff may compile a profile based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements after identifying the candidate as noteworthy. For more on how we select candidates to include, click here.
Incumbent: No
Political Office:
- U.S. House of Representatives (Assumed office: 2011)
- California State Assembly (2005-2010)
Biography: Bass received a bachelor's degree in health sciences from California State University and graduated from the physician assistant program at the University of Southern California. Bass worked as a physician's assistant and was a faculty member at the University of Southern California. In 1990, Bass co-founded the Community Coalition, a group focused on the issues of addiction and gang violence.
Show sources
Sources: Karen Bass' campaign website, "Homelessness," accessed May 16, 2022; YouTube, "Meet the candidates for Los Angeles mayor | Karen Bass," April 29, 2022; ABC 7, "LA mayor race: 5 candidates face off during mayoral debate on ABC7 - Watch full video of debate," May 2, 2022; The New Republic, "Karen Bass Is Clashing With Allies on the Left Over Policing," April 14, 2022; Karen Bass' campaign website, "Crime Prevention," accessed May 16, 2022; Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, "Bass, Karen," accessed May 16, 2022; Congress.gov, "Biography," accessed May 16, 2022
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Los Angeles in 2022.
Incumbent: No
Political Office: None
Biography: Caruso received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California (USC) and a law degree from Pepperdine University. He was the founder and chief executive officer of Caruso, a retail complex development company. Caruso founded a student loan forgiveness fund for low-income students, and served on Los Angeles’ Department of Water and Power Commission, Police Commission, and on the USC Board of Trustees.
Show sources
Sources: YouTube, "Crime Fighter :30," March 31, 2022; Rick Caruso's campaign website, "End Street Homelessness," accessed May 16, 2022; YouTube, "Faith, Family and Community," February 15, 2022; ABC 7, "LA mayor race: 5 candidates face off during mayoral debate on ABC7 - Watch full video of debate," May 2, 2022; LinkedIn, "Rick J. Caruso," accessed May 16, 2022; Rick Caruso's campaign website, "Meet Rick Caruso," accessed May 16, 2022
This information was current as of the candidate's run for Mayor of Los Angeles in 2022.
Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
No candidate in this race completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign advertisements
This section includes a selection of up to three campaign advertisements per candidate released in this race, as well as links to candidates' YouTube, Vimeo, and/or Facebook video pages. If you are aware of other links that should be included, please email us.
Karen Bass
September 7, 2022 |
May 9, 2022 |
October 8, 2021 |
View more ads here:
Rick Caruso
October 22, 2022 |
October 7, 2022 |
February 15, 2022 |
View more ads here:
Debates and forums
October 11 debate
On October 11, 2022, Bass and Caruso participated in a debate hosted by NBC 4.[22]
Click on the links below for summaries of the event:
October 6 debate
On October 6, 2022, Bass and Caruso participated in a debate hosted by KNX News.[23]
Click on the links below for summaries of the event:
September 21 debate
On September 21, 2022, Bass and Caruso participated in a debate hosted by Fox 11 Los Angeles.[28]
Click on the links below for summaries of the event:
News and conflicts in this primary
This race was featured in The Heart of the Primaries, a newsletter capturing stories related to conflicts within each major party.Click here to subscribe to the newsletter.
Election competitiveness
Polls
- See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
Polls are conducted with a variety of methodologies and have margins of error or credibility intervals.[33] The Pew Research Center wrote, "A margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points at the 95% confidence level means that if we fielded the same survey 100 times, we would expect the result to be within 3 percentage points of the true population value 95 of those times."[34] For tips on reading polls from FiveThirtyEight, click here. For tips from Pew, click here.
Los Angeles mayoral election: General election polls | |||||||
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Poll | Date | Undecided/Other | Margin of error | Sample size[35] | Sponsor[36] | ||
Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times | October 25-31 | 45% | 41% | 13%[37] | ±4.0 | 1,131 LV | - |
Wallin Opinion Research | October 15-17 | 37% | 40% | 24%[38] | ±4.9 | 400 LV | - |
Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times | September 22-26 | 34% | 31% | 34%[39] | ±3.5 | 1,688 RV | - |
Probolsky Research | September 19-25 | 48% | 42% | 10%[40] | ±4.5 | 500 LV | Klink Campaigns |
Berkeley IGS/Los Angeles Times | August 9-15 | 43% | 31% | 24%[41] | ±3 | 1,746 RV | - |
Noteworthy endorsements
This section lists noteworthy endorsements issued in this election, including those made by high-profile individuals and organizations, cross-party endorsements, and endorsements made by newspaper editorial boards. Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you are aware of endorsements that should be included, please email us.
General election endorsements | ||
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Endorser | ||
Government officials | ||
President Joe Biden (D) source | ✔ | |
Vice President Kamala D. Harris (D) source | ✔ | |
U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders source | ✔ | |
Individuals | ||
Former President Barack Obama source | ✔ | |
Former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan source | ✔ | |
Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa source | ✔ | |
Newspapers and editorials | ||
La Opinión source | ✔ | |
Los Angeles Daily News source | ✔ | |
Los Angeles Times Editorial Board source | ✔ | |
The Korea Times source | ✔ | |
Westside Current source | ✔ |
Election spending
Campaign finance
This section contains campaign finance figures from candidates submitted to the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission during both the primary and general election. It does not include information on spending by satellite groups. Click here to access those reports.
Satellite spending
- See also: Satellite spending
Satellite spending describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[42][43][44]
If available, this section includes links to online resources tracking satellite spending in this election. To notify us of a resource to add, email us.
- Los Angeles City Ethics Commission campaign finance data portal
- September 13, 2022: Building a Stronger California spent $200,000 on ads supporting Bass.[45]
Election context
Mayoral partisanship
Twenty-four of the 100 largest U.S. cities held mayoral elections in 2022. Once mayors elected in 2022 assumed office, Democrats held 62 top-100 mayoral offices, Republicans held 26, independents held three, and nonpartisan mayors held seven. Two mayors' partisan affiliations were unknown.
The following top 100 cities saw a change in mayoral partisan affiliation in 2022:
- Henderson, Nevada: Michelle Romero (R) was elected to succeed outgoing mayor Debra March (D) on June 14, winning the primary outright with 76% of the vote.
- Anaheim, California: Ashleigh Aitken (D) defeated Acting Mayor Trevor O'Neil (R) and two other candidates on November 8, 2022. Former mayor Harry Sidhu (R) resigned in May 2022.
- Chula Vista, California: John McCann (R) defeated Ammar Campa-Najjar (D) in the November 8 election to succeed term-limited mayor Mary Salas (D).
- North Las Vegas, Nevada: Pamela Goynes-Brown (D) defeated Patricia Spearman (D) in the election to succeed outgoing mayor John J. Lee (R) on November 8, 2022.[46]
Election history
2017
The city of Los Angeles, California, held primary elections for mayor, eight city council seats, city attorney, and city controller on March 7, 2017. Three community college board of trustees seats were also up for general election on that date.
Most races where no candidate earned a majority (50% plus one) of the primary votes cast advanced to a general election on May 16, 2017. This rule did not apply to the community college board races, which were determined by a plurality winner in the March election.[47]
This election was the second impacted by Charter Amendment 1. Passed in March 2015, the amendment shifted city elections to even-numbered years beginning in 2020. As a result, officials elected in 2017 won special five-and-a-half year terms ending in 2022. The following candidates ran in the primary election for mayor of Los Angeles.[48]
Los Angeles Mayor, Primary Election, 2017 | ||
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Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
81.37% | 331,310 | |
Mitchell Schwartz | 8.16% | 33,228 |
David Hernandez | 3.28% | 13,346 |
Diane Harman | 1.26% | 5,115 |
David Saltsburg | 1.18% | 4,809 |
Dennis Richter | 1.12% | 4,558 |
YJ Draiman | 0.91% | 3,705 |
Frantz Pierre | 0.83% | 3,386 |
Eric Preven | 0.74% | 3,023 |
Yuval Kremer | 0.60% | 2,436 |
Paul Amori | 0.55% | 2,231 |
Total Votes | 407,147 | |
Source: Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "March 7, 2017, Election Results: Statement of Votes Cast," accessed May 22, 2017 |
2013
- See also: Los Angeles mayoral election, 2013
Garcetti won the primary election on March 5, 2013, defeating the other seven candidates on the ballot. He defeated Wendy Greuel, who had come in 2nd place in the primary, in the general election on May 21, 2013.[49]
Mayor of Los Angeles, General Election, 2013 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
Nonpartisan | 54.2% | 222,300 | ||
Nonpartisan | Wendy Greuel | 45.8% | 187,609 | |
Total Votes | 409,909 |
Mayor of Los Angeles, Primary Election, 2013 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
Nonpartisan | 33.1% | 121,930 | ||
Nonpartisan | 29% | 106,748 | ||
Nonpartisan | Kevin James | 16.3% | 60,154 | |
Nonpartisan | Jan Perry | 15.9% | 58,472 | |
Nonpartisan | Emanuel Pleitez | 4.1% | 15,263 | |
Nonpartisan | Norton Sandler | 0.5% | 2,002 | |
Nonpartisan | Addie M. Miller | 0.5% | 1,810 | |
Nonpartisan | Yehuda "Yj" Draiman | 0.4% | 1,543 | |
Total Votes | 367,922 |
About the city
- See also: Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles is a city in California and the seat of Los Angeles County. As of 2020, its population was 3,898,747.
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of Los Angeles uses a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body and the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.[50]
Demographics
The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.
Demographic Data for Los Angeles, California | ||
---|---|---|
Los Angeles | California | |
Population | 3,898,747 | 39,538,223 |
Land area (sq mi) | 469 | 155,857 |
Race and ethnicity** | ||
White | 48.9% | 56.1% |
Black/African American | 8.8% | 5.7% |
Asian | 11.8% | 14.8% |
Native American | 0.7% | 0.8% |
Pacific Islander | 0.2% | 0.4% |
Other (single race) | N/A | 14.3% |
Multiple | 7% | 7.9% |
Hispanic/Latino | 48.1% | 39.1% |
Education | ||
High school graduation rate | 78.3% | 83.9% |
College graduation rate | 35.6% | 34.7% |
Income | ||
Median household income | $65,290 | $78,672 |
Persons below poverty level | 16.9% | 12.6% |
Source: population provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "Decennial Census" (2020). Other figures provided by U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2015-2020). | ||
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. |
What was at stake?
Report a story for this election
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Candidate survey
Ballotpedia invites candidates to participate in its annual survey. |
2022 battleground elections
- See also: Battlegrounds
This election was a battleground race. Other 2022 battleground elections included:
- Kansas' 3rd Congressional District election, 2022
- North Carolina's 1st Congressional District election, 2022 (May 17 Republican primary)
- Texas' 28th Congressional District election, 2022
- United States Senate election in Nevada, 2022
- Wisconsin gubernatorial election, 2022 (August 9 Republican primary)
See also
Los Angeles, California | California | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, "Bass, Karen," accessed May 16, 2022
- ↑ YouTube, "Get It Done," May 9, 2022
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Caruso," accessed May 16, 2022
- ↑ Rick Caruso's campaign website, "Meet Rick Caruso," accessed May 16, 2022
- ↑ YouTube, "Faith, Family and Community," February 15, 2022
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Rick Caruso changes registration to Democrat as he weighs a run for L.A. mayor," January 24, 2022
- ↑ The New York Times, "Rick Caruso and Karen Bass head to a runoff in the Los Angeles mayor’s race.," June 8, 2022
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Axios, "Why L.A. mayor’s race matters," May 29, 2022
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 This number is a New York Times estimate of votes reported.
- ↑ The New York Times, "Los Angeles Mayor Election Results," accessed November 16, 2022
- ↑ The New York Times, "Los Angeles Mayor Election Results," accessed November 15, 2022
- ↑ The New York Times, "Los Angeles Mayor Election Results," accessed November 14, 2022
- ↑ The New York Times, "Los Angeles Mayor Election Results," accessed November 10, 2022
- ↑ The New York Times, "Los Angeles Mayor Election Results," accessed November 10, 2022
- ↑ The New York Times, "Los Angeles Mayor Election Results," accessed November 10, 2022
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Rick Caruso closes in on Karen Bass as L.A. mayor’s race tightens, poll finds," November 4, 2022
- ↑ NBC Los Angeles, "Former President Obama Endorses Karen Bass for LA Mayor," October 29, 2022
- ↑ Westside Current, "Current Endorsement: Rick Caruso Can and Will Stand Up for Change," October 23, 2022
- ↑ Wallin Opinion Research, "City of Los Angeles Likely Voter Survey," October 18, 2022
- ↑ Twitter, "Karen Bass on October 14, 2022," accessed October 18, 2022
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Endorsement: Karen Bass for Los Angeles mayor," October 13, 2022
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 NBC 4, "Full Video: LA Mayoral Debate 2022, Karen Bass and Rick Caruso," October 11, 2022
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 YouTube, "KNX News Mayoral Debate — Los Angeles — Karen Bass / Rick Caruso," October 6, 2022
- ↑ NBC Los Angeles, "Bernie Sanders Endorses Karen Bass for LA Mayor," October 4, 2022
- ↑ Los Angeles Daily News, "Endorsement: Rick Caruso for mayor to give Los Angeles a clean start," October 4, 2022
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Caruso cuts into Bass’ lead, poll finds, as L.A. mayoral race heads into final weeks," October 2, 2022
- ↑ Probolsky Research, "Bass Leads in Race for Los Angeles Mayor," September 27, 2022
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 YouTube, "LA Mayoral Debate: Rep. Karen Bass, Rick Caruso square off," September 21, 2022
- ↑ Twitter, "AdImpact Politics on September 13, 2022," accessed September 13, 2022
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "In new poll, Karen Bass jumps out to big lead over Rick Caruso in race for L.A. mayor," August 26, 2022
- ↑ Deadline, "Joe Biden & Kamala Harris Endorse Karen Bass In L.A. Mayor’s Race; Rick Caruso Quickly Responds," August 2, 2022
- ↑ Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, "2022 CITY AND LAUSD ELECTIONS TOTALS BY SEAT," accessed August 30, 2022
- ↑ For more information on the difference between margins of error and credibility intervals, see explanations from the American Association for Public Opinion Research and Ipsos.
- ↑ Pew Research Center, "5 key things to know about the margin of error in election polls," September 8, 2016
- ↑ RV=Registered Voters
LV=Likely Voters - ↑ The sponsor is the person or group that funded all or part of the poll.
- ↑ Undecided: 13%
- ↑ Unsure/Refused: 24%
- ↑ Other: 3%
Undecided: 31% - ↑ Unsure: 10%
- ↑ Undecided: 24%
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed December 12, 2021
- ↑ National Review.com, "Why the Media Hate Super PACs," December 12, 2021
- ↑ Twitter, "AdImpact Politics on September 13, 2022," accessed September 13, 2022
- ↑ Lee was elected as a Democrat and switched parties in 2021.
- ↑ Los Angeles Daily News, "A dozen hopefuls step up to the starting line for Los Angeles mayoral race," November 11, 2016
- ↑ City of Los Angeles City Clerk, "2017 Primary Nominating Election Candidates," December 16, 2016
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
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- ↑ City of Los Angeles, "About the City Government," accessed September 15, 2014
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