Karen Bass Projected To Advance To November Los Angeles Mayoral Runoff
On Tuesday, June 2, 2026, CBS News projected that incumbent Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass will advance to the November mayoral runoff.[1]
The projection leaves the Nov. ballot's second slot to be decided between councilmember Nithya Raman and reality TV personality Spencer Pratt under California's top-two system, which advances only the two primary vote-getters.[1] Bass told CBS LA this will be her last campaign for public office.[1] She said Los Angeles homelessness fell 18% during her term while national homelessness rose 18%, and she said the city averted layoffs during a $1 billion budget shortfall.[1]
A May 28, 2026 UC Berkeley-LA Times poll put Bass at 26%, Raman at 25% and Pratt at 22% with a margin of error of about ±3 percentage points.[1] UCLA Luskin polling in the two months before the primary showed about 40% of likely voters were undecided, and that share fell to 10% in the late-May UC Berkeley-LA Times survey.[1] The race has drawn national attention after the January 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires and the immigration-enforcement raids and protests that followed.[1]
Pratt has faced questions about his residency after saying he lived in an Airstream and later at his father's Santa Barbara rental, and his campaign has run AI-generated ads critics call a "MAGA strategy." CBS News Bass acknowledged voter dissatisfaction and said her task is to persuade skeptical voters to support her.[1]
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📌 Key Facts
- On Tuesday, June 2, 2026, CBS News projected incumbent Mayor Karen Bass will advance to the November mayoral runoff while Nithya Raman and Spencer Pratt compete for the second slot.
- California's top-two system means only the top two primary vote-getters advance to the November ballot.
- A May 28, 2026 UC Berkeley-LA Times poll found Bass at 26%, Raman at 25% and Pratt at 22%, with a margin of error of about ±3 percentage points.
- UCLA Luskin polling in the two months before the primary showed about 40% of likely voters were undecided, a share that fell to 10% in the late-May UC Berkeley-LA Times survey.
- The race has drawn national attention in part because of the 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires and subsequent immigration-enforcement raids and protests.
- There are questions about Spencer Pratt's residency after he said he lived in an Airstream on his burned property and later at his father's rental home in Santa Barbara County following the January 2025 fire; his campaign has used political ads, including some AI-generated spots described as following a "MAGA strategy" to target Bass and Raman.
- Bass told CBS LA this will be her last campaign for public office, citing that during her term Los Angeles homelessness fell by 18% while national homelessness rose 18% and saying the city averted layoffs during a $1 billion budget shortfall; she also acknowledged voter dissatisfaction and said her task is to convince skeptical voters.
📰 Source Timeline (2)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- On Tuesday, June 2, 2026, CBS News projected that incumbent Mayor Karen Bass will advance to the November mayoral election while Nithya Raman and Spencer Pratt compete for the second runoff slot.
- The article reiterates California's top-two system, under which only the top two primary vote-getters advance to the November ballot.
- A May 28, 2026 UC Berkeley-LA Times poll found Bass at 26%, Raman at 25% and Pratt at 22%, with a margin of error of about 3 percentage points.
- UCLA Luskin polling in the two months before the primary showed about 40% of likely voters were undecided, a share that fell to 10% in the late May UC Berkeley-LA Times survey.
- The race has drawn national attention in part because of the 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires and subsequent immigration-enforcement raids and protests.
- The article details questions about Spencer Pratt's residency after he said he lived in an Airstream trailer on his burned property and later at his father's rental home in Santa Barbara County following the January 2025 fire.
- Pratt's campaign has used political ads, including some generated with artificial intelligence, described as following a "MAGA strategy" to target Bass and Raman.
- Bass told CBS LA this will be her last campaign for public office, saying that after serving in the Assembly, Congress and as mayor, "this is it."
- Bass cited statistics that during her term Los Angeles homelessness fell by 18% while national homelessness rose 18%, and said the city averted layoffs during a $1 billion budget shortfall.
- Bass acknowledged voter dissatisfaction with elected officials generally and said her task is to convince skeptical voters to support her.