In her bid for Los Angeles mayor, Nithya Raman ran as an outsider. The democratic socialist didn’t win a single endorsement from her 14 colleagues on the city council. The police union opposed her, she had friction with the Jewish community and the Democratic establishment lined up squarely behind the incumbent, Karen Bass. She now has to show she can lead. As mayor-elect following a stunning upset, Raman will need to navigate political rifts in balkanized City Hall while taking on problems that have defied her predecessors, including a long-running homeless crisis, an exodus of Hollywood jobs and miles of crumbling streets and sidewalks.

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A person sits on a bench as Father Pablo Coimbra walks past on his way to celebrate a weekly Mass for the homeless organized by Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish, which Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to visit in November, in the Borro neighborhood of Montevideo, Uruguay, Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Matilde Campodonico)