Thrissur, 09 June (H.S.): Kerala-born Indian-American politician Nithya Raman has secured a place in the final round of the Los Angeles mayoral election, emerging as a strong challenger to incumbent Mayor Karen Bass in the November contest.

Raman, whose family traces its roots to Thrissur in Kerala, advanced to the runoff after overtaking reality television personality and Republican candidate Spencer Pratt in the closing stages of vote counting from the June 2 primary election.

The race for the second runoff spot remained highly competitive for several days after polling. While Bass was widely expected to qualify for the final round, the battle between Raman and Pratt remained too close to call. As additional ballots were counted, Raman steadily widened her lead and eventually finished ahead of Pratt by around 43,000 votes.

Her campaign gained significant momentum during the final stages of the count. Weekend ballots heavily favoured Raman, with nearly 40 per cent of the votes counted going to her compared to about 18 per cent for Pratt. The strong finish helped increase her overall vote share by nearly five percentage points.

A prominent voice of the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, Raman is known for advocating affordable housing, urban planning reforms and social justice initiatives. She is also associated with the Democratic Socialists of America, a left-leaning political organisation.

Born into a Tamil family in Kerala, Raman moved to the United States with her family at the age of six and grew up in Louisiana. She became a U.S. citizen at the age of 22. Raman graduated from Harvard University and later earned a master’s degree in urban planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The 44-year-old first entered elected office in 2020 when she won a seat on the Los Angeles City Council, becoming the first South Asian American elected to the body. She was re-elected in 2024 and has since emerged as one of the city’s most influential progressive leaders.

Raman is married to television writer and producer Vali Chandrasekaran. The couple have twin children and live in the Silver Lake neighbourhood of Los Angeles.

Following her qualification for the runoff election, Raman thanked voters, volunteers and campaign workers in a message posted on X, expressing gratitude for their support and dedication throughout the campaign.

Her advance to the mayoral runoff marks a significant milestone for the Indian-American community and places a Kerala-born woman within striking distance of leading America’s second-largest city.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman