Los Angeles City Councilmember David Ryu of District 4 has been unseated after only one term.
As of Nov. 10, the results from the Nov. 3 election showed Ryu with 60,863 votes (47.34%) to challenger Nithya Raman’s 67,709 (52.66%).
“The voters of District 4 have spoken, and I respect the outcome of this election,” Ryu said on Nov. 6. “I am proud of the race we ran, and I will always be proud of the diverse coalition behind this campaign — working people, Democratic Party leaders, and hundreds of volunteers and community leaders from across Council District 4.
“My team and volunteers worked hard, and I am so grateful for the calls they made and conversations they had about the critical issues facing all of us in Los Angeles. I congratulate my opponent on her victory. Having won on a wave of reform five years ago, I know how difficult it is to implement change in City Hall. I wish her success in continuing our shared goal of reform in local government and in serving our city.
“In one term, we were able to build hundreds of units of homeless housing where there had previously been very few resources. We passed sweeping anti-corruption reforms into law, introduced many more, and we tripled the matching funds program to support grassroots candidates. I am proud to have entered office in 2015 as an outsider and reformer, to have charted a new course of transparency in City Hall, and to have served the people and communities of District 4 these past five years.
“Now is the time to come together. No matter your political views, or who you supported in this campaign, we all must work together to overcome the challenges facing our city. Homelessness, corruption, and an eviction crisis cannot be solved by any one person alone. It will take all of our best efforts and good faith to build the future we need in Los Angeles.
“I have worked to build homeless housing resources, anti-poverty programs and clean government for 20 years, and no matter what comes next, I am not stopping now.”
Raman said in a statement, “To the residents of CD4, our brilliant, kind, and inspiring campaign team, our thousands of tireless volunteers, and everyone who shared their ideas for how we can build the L.A. we deserve: It’s now official. Thanks to your support, we’re going to City Hall.
“This was a campaign built on the work of organizers and movement leaders who have been fighting for a better L.A. for years, and so many energized people who were just realizing their power to shape the city. I’m so honored to carry their values with me as a councilmember.
“I want to thank Councilmember Ryu for his leadership over the past five years. His focus on homelessness and transparent governance are issues that I take to heart. I hope to build on his efforts in City Hall.
“We ran a campaign on policy, civic education and constituent engagement. The crises facing Los Angeles are vast but hopefully not insurmountable. We are excited to build off of the policies we campaigned on, and get to work.
“To the people of Council District 4, I’m so grateful for the trust you’ve placed in me. I know we’re heading into a challenging moment as a city, but I am ready and excited to navigate it with you.
“I have countless people to thank individually. But for now, I just want to celebrate4 the joy of working with so many of you to fight for our city — and get ready for the work to come. There will be joy in tha work, too. Because we’re all going to City Hall together.”
Raman is an urban planner, homeless advocate and a former executive director of Time’s Up Entertainment, a nonprofit that works against sexual harassment and abuse in the workforce.
Council President Nury Martinez congratulated Raman on her victory: “I’m excited to have a third woman of color join this council, and I know she is going to bring her knowledge, energy and passion to hit the ground running. I look forward to working with her.”
Ryu was the second Asian American (after Mike Woo in the 1980s) and the first Korean American to be elected to the City Council. Raman will be the first Asian American woman and the first person of South Asian descent on the council.
District 4 reaches into Koreatown and Mid-Wilshire on the south; through the Miracle Mile, Fairfax District, and Hollywood Hills into Sherman Oaks on the west; through much of Hollywood and over Cahuenga Pass into North Hollywood on the north; and through Los Feliz and Griffith Park into much of Silver Lake on the east.
The district includes many of the city’s tourist destinations, such as the Hollywood Boulevard district, the La Brea Tar Pits and Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Farmers Market and The Grove, Griffith Park with the Hollywood Sign and Griffith Observatory, and the Hollywood Bowl.