US Justice Department drops bid to force California to set aside disputed ballots
Ballots are sorted the day after California’s primary election at the L.A. County Ballot Processing Center, June 3, 2026, in City of Industry.(Jae C. Hong / Associated Press)The U.S. Department of Justice on Friday moved to dismiss its own lawsuit that sought to stop California from counting roughly 20,000 ballots it alleged went to noncitizens until their immigration status could be verified.The request to dismiss the case comes days after Republicans’ significant losses in the midterm elections and about a week before a scheduled hearing where a special master was slated to evaluate the accuracy of the list. California officials have previously said the list is out of date and includes legitimate voters — a sentiment that the federal judge presiding over the case echoed in his blistering order denying the federal government’s request.The case was at the forefront of President Donald Trump’s administration’s effort to assert control over state-run elections across the country, which T
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Defense attorney: Long Beach police can’t be trusted to share evidence that could clear defendants
Long Beach police officers responded to a report of a gunman stealing a van being repossessed just blocks from the Long Beach Police North Station in March 2025. That case has led to serious allegations about how the department handled information about one of the arresting officers at the scene that night.(Megan Garvey / LAist)Can Long Beach police be trusted to uphold the constitutional right to a fair trial? That’s the question raised in a new court filing by a prominent defense attorney, who alleges the department failed his client, Lonnie Jacobs, when it comes to ensuring basic due process rights.At issue is a now-former Long Beach Police Department officer’s long-undisclosed conviction for an out-of-state assault.In his filing Thursday, Scott Sanders, a defense attorney, outlines how the department hid an arrest and conviction involving one of its officers from defendants and the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office for seven years. Sanders’ filing makes the case that th
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Jane Kim declares victory in commissioner race. CA insurance could be in for big changes
From left, insurance commissioner candidates Ben Allen and Jane Kim.(Fred Greaves / CalMatters)Jane Kim declared victory in the California insurance commissioner race on Friday, capping off what she called “the first unabashed and unapologetic populist progressive campaign.”The former San Francisco supervisor is ahead of fellow Democrat state Sen. Ben Allen with 65% of ballots counted as of midday Friday, 53% to 47%.“Everything in this campaign was about the ideas that we were putting forward, and whether you agree with them or not, the point is that we have ideas… and we’re going to explore all of them,” Kim said at a press conference in San Francisco, where she was joined by a fire survivor, labor leaders and others. “We plan to make insurance work for all of us,” she said.A win by Kim, whose proposal to create a public wildfire insurance program resonated with voters around the state despite its many naysayers, would be the latest triumph in the progressive wave that’s sweeping the
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Roy wins LA city attorney's race
Marissa Roy has won the race for Los Angeles city attorney.(Courtesy of the Marissa Roy campaign)Topline:Marissa Roy will be the next L.A. city attorney. Her opponent, John McKinney, has conceded. How we got here: Roy held on to a strong lead over McKinney ever since polls closed and is currently ahead by more than twice as many votes. Roy will be a fresh face to the role after the incumbent city attorney, Hydee Feldstein Soto, was ousted in the June primary in a rare defeat of an elected city official. What the candidates had to say: Roy told LAist Friday that her campaign built a wide coalition of Angelenos who believe that the city attorney can be a powerful fighter for the people. "We are going to use that coalition to start building cases," she said. "We've been spending the last 19 months talking to people about what they've been facing ... and now we are going to start working with the attorneys to put some of that into action. People can start expecting the justice they asked
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None of Nithya Raman’s council colleagues backed her bid for mayor. Will they work with her?
City Council members from left, Tim McOsker, Eunisses Hernandez, Nithya Raman and Marqueece Harris-Dawson at an L.A. City Council meeting.(Brian van der Brug / Getty Images)Nithya Raman won the race for Los Angeles mayor this week and unseated incumbent Karen Bass without a single endorsement from her colleagues on the City Council.She won without them, but she’ll have to govern with them.Raman, a two-term councilmember and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, entered the race in February just hours before the filing deadline and shortly after endorsing Bass. The move caught some colleagues off guard and angered Bass allies, who noted the mayor had helped Raman win reelection two years ago.After Bass conceded Thursday, nearly every councilmember said they were ready to work with Mayor-elect Raman, who takes office on Dec. 14. In a video message Thursday, she spoke to Angelenos who voted for Bass or skipped the election altogether.“I am going to City Hall to work every single
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LA County turnout officially surpasses last midterm — with more than 500K ballots still to count
A Los Angeles Sheriff's deputy directs a sniffer dog to search for hazardous materials, on an inspection of arriving ballots at the Los Angeles County Ballot Processing Center in City of Industry, California on Nov. 3, 2026.(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)With the latest release of new vote tallies Friday morning, turnout of L.A. County voters has officially surpassed the 2022 midterm election. More than 550,000 ballots still remain to be counted which will push turnout far higher still — although likely short of recent presidential elections.L.A.'s competive mayoral race may have driven more voters, although turnout was unusually high for a midterm across the nation where voters went to the polls to oust Republican candidates in what's being called a blue tsunami. Orange County also saw higher turnout, on a higher baseline of registered voters.Here's what you should know about the local vote totals as of Friday morning, Nov. 6:In Los Angeles County, ballots from ne
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Former clients of immigration lawyer Alexandra Lozano Kennedy can get free legal help in LA
An ad inside Alexandra Lozano Kennedy's now shuttered office in Commerce, CA.(Julia Barajas / LAist)The L.A. Law Library in downtown Los Angeles will host a free legal clinic this Saturday for individuals who believe they may have been victims of fraud or attorney misconduct as clients of Alexandra Lozano Kennedy or her law firm, La Luz del Camino Legal.The former lawyer — who used social media and Latino religious iconography to attract clientele — had tens of thousands of clients and offices across the U.S., including one in the city of Commerce in Southeast L.A. County.Until recently, Lozano Kennedy was licensed by the Washington State Bar Association, which enabled her to represent clients nationwide. Lozano Kennedy resigned in May and is now permanently barred from practicing law in that state. She was also suspended from practicing before the Department of Homeland Security, including U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; immigration courts; and the Board of Immigration Appe
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Voters have chosen to increase LA's sales tax — here’s how it compares to other cities
Watch for an increase in sales tax coming next year.(Matt Slocum / Getty Images)The city of L.A.'s current sales tax is 10.25%. But after the region’s stretched firefighting services became visible during the devastating 2025 fires, voters solidly approved Measure FD this week, increasing the rate to 10.75%.It’s expected to raise nearly $350 million yearly for the L.A. Fire Department to hire more firefighters, purchase vehicles and upgrade fire stations.How and when the increase will trickle down to youIt’s likely you won’t start paying the additional sales tax until spring. The exact date is difficult to predict: The measure says the tax will be collected on “the first day of the first calendar quarter commencing more than one hundred ten (110) days after the adoption of this Ordinance” by the L.A. City Council. The L.A. County Registrar-Recorder has until Dec. 3 to certify county elections.Until then, the City of L.A.’s 10.25% sales tax won’t change. Then it will go up to 10.75%.L.A
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Raman defeats Bass in race for LA mayor, ushering in new era of progressive politics
L.A. City Councilmember Nithya Raman speaks to supporters at the Greek Theater on election night.(Etienne Laurent / AFP via Getty Images)Nithya Raman, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America who offered a message of hope to a city beset by crises, has beaten Karen Bass in the race for Los Angeles mayor, the first time an incumbent has been ousted from that office in nearly a quarter century.Raman, who is of Indian descent, becomes the first South Asian mayor of L.A. She was elected to the City Council six years ago.Bass conceded the race Thursday morning. At the time, she had 48% of the vote compared with Raman's 52%, according to the latest vote count. In a video statement, Raman said she was "deeply honored" to be L.A.'s next mayor, and she thanked the people who knocked on doors, sent texts and made phone calls in support of her campaign.Despite the sometimes contentious race she and Bass waged against one another, Raman commended Bass for her decades of service to the city
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Coyote becomes first mammal seen using 101 wildlife crossing: 'This is amazing'
A coyote is seen early Thursday morning, the second sighting of the mammal using the wildlife crossing. (Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing via Facebook)The Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing over the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills is set to officially open next month, but that hasn’t stopped some wildlife from already using it.Cameras captured coyote footage twice — once last week and again on Thursday morning — making the mammal the first large animal species seen using the crossing.“This is amazing — obviously, the wildlife are not waiting for our opening date,” said Beth Pratt, president of the Wildlife Crossing Fund. “The animals are already blessing this crossing and saying, ‘Yep, you got it right.’”Construction of the expansive bridge began in 2022, aimed at giving wildlife safe passage between the Santa Monica Mountains and Simi Hills after years of research.Pratt said it’s unclear whether the images of the coyote are of the same animal. The coyote in the most recent image from Th
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