Voters will head to the polls during the Primary Election on June 2 to elect city officials in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills, as well as the governor of California. (photo by Edwin Folven)

The candidate pool is becoming clearer for the 2026 Los Angeles Municipal Election as the period for filing a declaration to run opened on Feb. 2. While multiple candidates filed during the first three days, the deadline is Saturday, Feb. 7, and the final field of candidates is expected to expand.

In the race for L.A. mayor, incumbent Karen Bass is among a field of 24 candidates who filed an intention to run as of press time. The list of candidates for mayor includes Los Angeles city engineering manager Asaad Alnajjar, architect Adam Jeffrey Carmichael, administrative manager and activist Griselda Diaz, minister Cassandra Faye Floyd, transportation coordinator Keeldar Shawn Hamilton, writer Nick Harron, pastor and housing advocate Rae Chen Huang, software systems, musician and entrepreneur Tish Hyman, political scientist Juanita Lopez, sales representative Stevie Maceo Milan, painting contractor Misael Ortega and community advocate Spencer Pratt. Also included are chief creative officer Bryant Acosta, artist Alyxandria-Jamil Carter, streamer and behavioral interventionist Nelson Cheng, real estate investor Franziska Von Fischer, mental health activist Jeanne Moller Fontana, gardener and advocate Joseph Garcia, entrepreneur and financial advisor Robert Goodman, attorney Andrew K. Kim, mental health professional Suzy Kim, enterprise technical architect Andrej A. Selivra and nurse Vincent Wali.

The race in the Los Angeles City Council’s 5th District is also coming into focus, with incumbent Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky filing an intention to run on Feb. 2 – the first day the L.A. City Clerk’s Office began accepting applications.

“I’m honored to do this work and grateful for the chance to keep delivering results for this district,” Yaroslavsky said. “But there is so much more work to do. Housing costs way too much. The quality of our streets, sidewalks and basic city services fall short. Small businesses are struggling, and the work to reduce homelessness and improve neighborhood safety continues every day. That work calls for focused leadership, and that’s why I am running for reelection.”

Also filing to run in the 5th District are community leader Eddie Ha, tenants’ rights attorney Henry Mantel, publicist and community activist Dory Frank, community influencer Ashkan “Alex” Nazarian and city employee Peter Gerard Kearns.

Incumbent Los Angeles City Councilman Hugo Soto-Martinez filed an intention to run in the 2026 election on Feb. 4.

“Over the past three years, we’ve raised wages, lowered rents and decreased homelessness by 25% across the district,” Soto-Martinez said. “We’re running to build a safer, more affordable city that better serves our residents’ needs.”

Soto-Martinez is challenged in the race by housing advocate Dylan J. Kendall, urban community planner Rich Sarian and retired military servicemember Gilbert Vitela, Jr.

The L.A. City Clerk’s Office oversees the municipal election and provides a list of candidates who have filed and a schedule of upcoming deadlines on its website at clerk.lacity.gov. The 2026 Los Angeles Municipal election also includes the races for L.A. city attorney and controller. The list of candidates is updated daily.

The Primary Election will be held on June 2. If no candidate receives 50 percent or more of the vote in June, the top two candidates who receive the most votes will face each other in the Nov. 3 General Election.

Voters will also head to the polls on June 2 in the race for Beverly Hills City Council and the race for California governor. In both races, the candidate filing period runs from Feb. 9-March 6.

Three seats on the Beverly Hills City Council are up for election in 2026. Candidates who have already announced they are running include incumbent mayor Sharona Nazarian, incumbent Councilman Lester Friedman and Cultural Heritage Commissioner Andy Licht. Incumbent Councilman John Mirisch has filed a lawsuit challenging the city’s term limits, in a bid for reelection. For information, visit beverlyhills.org/167/election-information.

Candidates who have announced an intention to run for governor include Democrats Katie Porter, Xavier Becerra, Antonio Villaraigosa, Tony Thurmond, Tom Steyer, Ian Calderon and Eric Swalwell, and Republicans Chad Bianco, Brandon Jones, Sharifah Hardie and Steve Hilton. For information on statewide races, visit sos.ca.gov/elections.