Congresswoman Karen Bass has pulled comfortably ahead of businessman Rick Caruso, offering him an apparently tough fight in November, according to the painfully slow Los Angeles County election returns released on Tuesday, June 21.

Bass pulled ahead of Caruso several days ago and has stayed in the lead. She is now at 43.14% while he is at 35.98%. Their costly battle won’t be decided until the November runoff. But it looks like Caruso has his work cut out for him, as some local races appear to have rewarded the more progressive candidates.

Bass is seen as the more progressive of the pair. But as candidates seek to consolidate support for the November election, a late-entrant progressive mayoral candidate, activist Gina Viola, called on Bass this week to more fully embrace progressive views — such as opposing law enforcement measures like LAMC 41.18, the city’s anti-camping law that is applied to the unhoused.

Caruso has called for increasing the police department by 1,500 sworn officers. Bass wants to maintain the police force, increase the overall budget, and free up more officers to patrol — as a response to voters’ reports of feeling unsafe.

Viola, who entered the race at the last minute due to her disappointment toward Bass’s policies on homelessness and public safety, criticized the congresswoman for “watering down your opponent’s talking points” and for failing to denounce Los Angeles Municipal Code 41.18.

“We are more than willing to discuss these issues, and we are willing to bring our organizing strengths to this race once more,” Viola wrote in a statement. “But we are not obligated to fight on behalf of those who are unwilling to fight for us.” 

Los Angeles voters also delivered what appears to be a big upset in favor of a progressive woman candidate on the Eastside, who in the final count may win outright a rare primary against a powerful Los Angeles city councilman — Gil Cedillo.

Although the outcome has not been verified, the numbers today from the Los Angeles County Registrar-Register appear to show community activist Eunisses Hernandez beating Cedillo, 54.03% to 45.97%.

The numbers strongly suggest that the male-dominated L.A. City Council will see an increase in female members, with Hernandez — who declared victory over the weekend — becoming one of a handful of progressive Democrats on the city council.

Hernandez declared that the results showed “the people of CD1 have spoken, calling for change by voting to prioritize affordable housing, investments in our elders and young people and support for renters.”

Her campaign team this weekend said Hernandez seized the unexpected win despite expensive attacks from the police officer’s union and California Apartment Association, as well as L.A. Federation of Labor, which endorsed Cedillo. Those groups, typically major drivers of L.A. city elections, tried to “discredit (Hernandez’s) progressive values and policy goals” her campaign said.

This would not be Hernandez’s first electoral victory. She is credited as the architect of the successful Measure J, which calls for 10% of the county’s unappropriated budget to be spent on programs that offer an alternative to incarceration.

Cedillo has not yet issued a statement, with campaign aides saying he likely will not comment on the results.

The Los Angeles city attorney race was still seemingly too close to call, with three frontrunners. The top finisher tonight was Faisal Gill, a civil rights attorney. Behind him are former corporate attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto and Marina Torres in a neck-and-neck race for the second spot in a November runoff. Feldstein Soto now has 19.92%, followed very closely by Torres with 19.85%, and just 351 votes separating the two.

A November runoff is set for City Council District 5 on L.A.’s Westside, where Katy Young Yaroslavsky and Sam Yebri were vying for a seat left open by termed-out L.A. City Councilmember Paul Koretz. Yaroslavsky, a senior policy director under L.A. County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, had 48.99% on Tuesday, while the second-placer, nonprofit director and business owner Yebri, significantly trailed her with 29.65%.

Because the county registrar does not identify which parts of Los Angeles still have uncounted ballots, the outcome of close races are hard to call. But so few ballots are left to count that many candidates are viewing the races as over, and won or lost.

In City Hall races heading for runoffs in November, the city controller race shows accountant and political newcomer Kenneth Mejia with 43.11%, outstripping a political veteran, Los Angeles City Councilman Paul Koretz, who garnered 23.67%.

Another progressive candidate, labor organizer Hugo Soto-Martinez, has prevented incumbent District 13 City Councilman Mitch O’Farrell from an outright win of more than 50%. On June 21, Soto-Martinez had 40.64% to O’Farrell’s 31.65%.

In L.A.’s Westside Council District 11, candidates Erin Darling and Traci Park will face one another in the November runoff. Darling had 34.64%, while Park had 28.98%.

In L.A. City Council District 15, which includes San Pedro and Harbor City, Tim McOsker, with 37.70% and Danielle Sandoval, with 29.34%, will meet again in the November runoff.