L.A. City Councilmember Nithya Raman wins reelection as Ethan Weaver concedes

Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman has won her bid for a second term, securing the majority vote needed to avoid a runoff in a district that straddles the Hollywood Hills.

The latest batch of returns showed Raman with 50.6% of the vote, compared with 38.6% for her nearest opponent, Deputy City Atty. Ethan Weaver. In third place was software engineer Levon “Lev” Baronian at 10.7%.

Raman thanked her supporters, her campaign volunteers and the district’s residents on Thursday, saying her conversations with voters during the campaign showed that the city is “full of hope and possibility.”

“I’m truly grateful to everyone who took the time to share their passion for the city with us,” she said in a statement. “And I really look forward to carrying that sense of optimism and insistence on a better L.A. with me over the next four years.”

Weaver, who resides in Los Feliz, had sought to make major issues of public safety and homelessness, criticizing Raman for opposing a package of police raises and fighting an ordinance that prohibits homeless encampments near schools and day-care centers.

He said he called Raman on Thursday to concede, wishing her “tremendous success” in her next four-year term.

“I am so proud of the campaign we ran and the community voices that we raised,” he said. “It’s always a difficult thing to lose. But I step away with my head high, proud of the work we’ve done running this race.”

Raman and her two challengers were competing to represent a district that straddles the Hollywood Hills, stretching from Silver Lake in the east to the San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Reseda in the west.

Raman campaigned in a district that is significantly different from the one that elected her in 2020. A year after she took office, the City Council redrew about 40% of the district, taking out such areas as Hancock Park and Park La Brea and adding all or part of Encino, Studio City and other neighborhoods.

During the campaign, Weaver received huge financial support from unions that represent police officers and firefighters, as well as landlords, business groups and other donors, which spent a combined $1.35 million on his behalf.

Raman, who lives in Silver Lake, worked to turn that huge outside spending into a negative for Weaver, saying it showed that special interests were unhappy with her votes in support of new tenant protections and against police raises and digital billboards.

Raman ran on her record of passing new renter protections, moving homeless residents indoors and advocating for new reforms at City Hall, including an expansion in the size of the council. Her supporters portrayed the race as one that would determine the future of progressive politics at City Hall.

Baronian, the third-place candidate, voiced disappointment in the outcome. The Sherman Oaks resident said he believes the district will continue to see fewer police, an unresponsive city government and spending on homelessness that lacks “accountability.”

“I think it’s going to be more of the same in Los Angeles,” he said.

In an Eastside district, attorney Ysabel Jurado, another candidate backed by the city’s political left, also had a strong showing, remaining in first place ahead of Councilmember Kevin de León. The two will compete in a Nov. 5 runoff election.

In the east San Fernando Valley, former state Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian heads to a runoff against small-business owner Jillian Burgos. And in a Crenshaw-to-Koreatown district, Councilmember Heather Hutt will face a runoff challenge from attorney Grace Yoo.

On Thursday, election officials said they still had an estimated 8,200 ballots left to count countywide. Those ballots were not expected to significantly change the outcome of the City Council contests.