Billionaire businessman Rick Caruso jumped to an early lead over rival Rep. Karen Bass (D-CA) when the votes were counted Tuesday night, with 8,000 votes, or about 41% to 38%.
The left-wing Bass is the choice of the Democratic Party establishment and was nearly selected as Joe Biden’s running mate in the 2020 election.
Caruso, a Republican turned independent and turned Democrat, is pursuing a pledge to solve crime and homelessness, pointing to his successful career as a real estate developer — a tactic that has earned him comparisons from critics to Donald Trump.
The race has divided the Hollywood elite, as Breitbart News reported:
Stars like Jennifer Aniston, Kumail Nanjiani, Amber Tamblyn and Billy Eichner are urging fans to vote for Bass. Meanwhile, Kim Kardashian, Gwyneth Paltrow and Katy Perry face Caruso.
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Jennifer Aniston and Magic Johnson have backed Bass, according to a Bloomberg News report. Meanwhile, Caruso has received support from Kim Kardashian and Gwyneth Paltrow.
If neither of the top two candidates can secure an outright majority, they will move to a runoff election in November to determine the overall winner.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday nights from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM ET (4:00 PM to 7:00 PM PT). He is the author of the recent ebook Neither Free Nor Fair: The 2020 US Presidential Election. His recent book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential election from a conservative perspective. He is winner of the Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship 2018. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak†