The November 3rd General Midterm Election took place this week as Angelenos showed up to the polls. Before the big day, prominent candidates spoke to mass media outlets and the public, solidifying their final stances and encouraging people to vote.
Xavier Becerra made history as California’s first elected Latino Governor, defeating Republican candidate Steve Hilton with a significant lead of 49 percent.
“What a great night to be a Californian. What a great night to be an American,” said Becerra in his speech as he ushers in a new era. “To be the son of immigrants from a union household to be standing in victory with all of you, now I’m not gonna sugarcoat it. These past two years have been tough: higher prices, more wars, corruption and lawlessness. But we hung in there: fought back. It felt like ‘Mission: Impossible.’ We knew it was a necessary mission.”
He further added, “And tonight, sisters and brothers, because of your tireless work, we can proudly utter the inspiring battle cry of our beloved and departed sister and warrior Dolores Huerta: ‘Sî, se puede.’ Yes, we can! Yes, we did! We fought, and we won!”
Hilton responded in his speech Tuesday night, reflecting on the people’s decision on who they feel is the best fit for the job as governor of California.
“Maybe this isn’t the best year to be running for office as a Republican. Well, when we see what’s going on around the country. But I tell you what, this is the best place to be running for office as a Republican, because there is nowhere better than California. This is the greatest place in the greatest nation on earth. And it has been an honor and a joy to travel this beautiful state of ours.”
He further added, “ I just want to tell you right now, the change we hoped for may be delayed, but the change is coming. Our fight goes on, and I’ll be there with you.” Some critics took Hilton’s statement as a warning for future elections.
Councilwoman Nithya Raman is currently in the lead for the title of mayor of Los Angeles as of Nov. 4, with a lead of 51 percent to Bass, who is currently at 49 percent, a very narrow race. Raman said the following during a viewing party: I’m hopeful. I’m very hopeful. I’m also really superstitious. So we’re all just going to be cool, OK? Very cool.”
She also said, “Our city hall became a place where we became so used to saying no, we forgot how to say yes. The results? L.A. stopped being a place where we could build things, where we could open things, where we could film things, where we could create things.”
Karen Bass said the following during election night: “Let me just say it takes a while to count the vote in our city. But pretty soon we shall know, and I am confident with all of the work that is done here that we will achieve victory.”
At the time this article was written, Raman is leading for mayor of Los Angeles, but ballots are still being counted.
Further context
Mayor Karen Bass sparked headlines and social media posts when Los Angeles’ GOP expressed support for her just a few days before November 3rd. Critics suggest the GOP is doing this because it feels Nithya Raman is too progressive.
Although some social media posts suggested that Donald Trump also endorsed Karen Bass, the GOP said they support her; Donald Trump has not endorsed Bass.
As an establishment Democrat, this move caused a lot of criticism toward the politician, who during her 2nd term has garnered polarizing criticism from leftists, centrists, and conservative critics, and yet still managed to be neck and neck in polling results against her opponent, Councilwoman Nithya Raman, leading up to Nov. 3.
Before we explore some election night results, it is important to note that last week, former mayoral opponent in the 2022 election, billionaire developer Rick Caruso – who spent over $100 million running as a Republican-turned Democrat against Bass in 2022– announced that he would vote for her. He said in an exclusive statement to ABC7 during an interview with Josh Haskell: “I think like most Angelenos, I’ve struggled with the choices that we have, but I’ve given it a lot of thought, especially a lot of thought over the weekend.”
He continued, “I’ve looked at the records, and I’ve made a clear decision of who I’m going to vote for… And that’s going to be Mayor Bass,” said Caruso.
Bass responded that she was “honored regarding the support,” and referenced their recent collaboration during the Palisades fire rebuilding process, presenting it as evidence of her ability to work across party lines and differences to lead Los Angeles.
Once Raman’s team learned the Republican Party supported Mayor Bass, her campaign took to social media and posted the following to her Instagram account on Nov. 2.
“The Republican Party is trying to elect Karen Bass. The LA County GOP has already raised $200,000 in an effort to defeat Nithya Raman, funneling the money through a pro-Bass Super PAC.”
Gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra didn’t endorse Mayor Bass. However, he had the opportunity to do so when an NBC4 reporter interviewed him and asked who he supported for mayor of Los Angeles. In the interview, he stood next to Bass as the reporter asked why he didn’t endorse her.
Becerra told the reporter, “Well, Karen Bass and I go way, way back. We have known each other for a long, long time, and we served together in Congress.”
Alex Villanueva lost the sheriff’s race to incumbent Sheriff Robert Luna.
Proposition 40, also known as the billionaire tax, has not passed as of Nov. 4 and is down by 11 points; therefore, billionaires living in California with over $1 billion in assets will not be taxed an extra 5 percent to help fund healthcare and education programs. Ballots are still being counted on this particular measure.
Proposition 39 has failed to pass, which is the voter ID measure that megadonors of Trump and Republicans pushed.
The overall race in California and Los Angeles has not been fully called yet, but ballots are still rolling in for final results.
Many across the country are celebrating a new “blue wave” as Democrats completely flip Congress. Expert projections show that Democrats are leading the way and have secured control of the Senate and House. This change gives Democrats control of Congress, and they can now pursue an investigation of the Trump administration if they choose.
President Trump has expressed disdain for the current Democratic blue wave and blames Fox News for sabotaging the Republicans’ momentum. He also said he will systematically veto legislation passed by newly elected congressional majorities across the nation in a live phone interview and through multiple posts on his app, Truth Social.
Editor’s note – please be aware that at the time this article was published, some results may have changed and not match what is published in this article, as the Midterm Election in Los Angeles, California had not been finalized during the production time of this article.
