As LA County officials inch closer to counting all ballots for the primary election, some races for the LA City Council seats may produce surprising results -- even an upset.
After the LA County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk tallied more than 1.6 million ballots – the large majority of them vote-by-mail ballots – the final results will likely become available in the middle of the week.
LA City Council
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Council District 14: The most contentious council race has pitted the embattled incumbent, Kevin de León, against two of his former allies, Assemblymembers Miguel Santiago and Wendy Carrillo. Despite calls for his resignation following the racist recording leak, de León prevailed, fended off several recall attempts and is now heading to a November runoff.
But it turns out a dark horse candidate may be getting more support than the incumbent.
As of Wednesday, Ysabel J. Jurado, a tenant attorney, has more votes than three seasoned politicians. Jurado has about 4,000 more votes than de León, which could set the stage for a run-off between the two candidates.
Meanwhile, it appears Santigo and Carrillo may not face their former friend in November. Santiago is in third place with over 21% of the votes so far with Carrillo being in distant fourth place.
Council District 4: Incumbent Nithya Raman is likely to avoid a run-off and hold onto her seat for the second term after getting more than 50% of the votes, fending off her challenger, Deputy City Attorney Ethan Weaver.
Council District 2: The race to replace Paul Krekorian, who is completing his final term on the city council this year, has attracted seven candidates. So far, former state assemblymember Adrin Nazarian, endorsed by LA Mayor Karen Bass, has received some 38% votes so far. He’s being trailed by Jillian Burgos, a small businesswoman.
Council District 6: Imelda Padilla, who won the special election to fill the city council seat vacated by Nury Martinez, has declared victory after securing nearly 80% of the votes so far in the San Fernando Valley district.
Council District 8: Marqueece Harris-Dawson, one of the progressive voices on the city council, has declared victory for winning his third and final term on the city council. He’s garnered nearly 80% of votes from the district.
Council District 10: Incumbent Heather Hutt is well positioned to head to a November runoff to win a full four-year term. She’s likely to face second-place challenger Grace Yoo.
Council District 12: Incumbent John Lee won more than 60% of the votes and secured another term despite ethics violation accusations.
LA County District Attorney’s Office
Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón has successfully defeated all his 11 challenges in the primary and is heading to a November run-off with the second highest vote-getter, Nathan Hochman.
While about 25% of LA County voters supported the incumbent, it’s not clear whether Hochman, a former federal prosecutor, will be able to consolidate all anti-Gascón votes in November.
LA County Board of Supervisors
Supervisor Holly Mitchell, Janice Hahn, Kathryn Barger will return to their jobs next year.
Each incumbent won her race easily by garnering more than 50% of votes.
Even in the most contentious of the three races, Hahn won over 57% of the votes counted so far, securing twice more votes in the 4th District on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors than her challenger and former LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
In the 2nd District, Holly Mitchell has won nearly 70% of votes so far, cruising into her second term.
Meanwhile, Kathryn Barger of the 5th District has secured her third and final term on the board by winning more than 55% of the votes.
