Karen Ruth Bass, who has been a congresswoman and state lawmaker for a long time now, is elected as the mayor of the city of Los Angeles. She defeated her billionaire opponent Rick Caruso to become the first woman mayor of Los Angeles. Bass is a veteran Democratic congresswoman who has sworn to build alliance in a metropolis torn by racial tensions and fed up with homelessness. On November 16, the Los Angeles County election results showed Bass leading with more than 53 percent of the vote and the returns trending heavily for her. After Tom Bradley, Karen Bass is the second black person to be elected as the mayor of Los Angeles.
Karen Bass Net Worth 2023
The daughter of a postal letter carrier and homemaker, Bass has come a long way as a politician. She created history by becoming the first black woman mayor of Los Angeles in its history of 241 years. As of Karen Bass Net Worth 2023, it stands at around a million dollars.
| Name | Karen Ruth Bass |
| Profession | Politician |
| Net worth | $1 million (est.) |
Early Life & Education
Bass was born on October 3, 1953 in Los Angeles, California to Wilhelmina and DeWitt Talmadge Bass. Her father was a postal letter carrier and her mother was a homemaker. As a child, bass used to see the civil rights movement on television with her father which created an interest in activism.
She studied philosophy at San Diego State University and graduated from the Keck School of Medicine of USC Physician Assistant Program. She has a bachelor of science degree in health sciences from California State University and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Southern California.
Check: Top Democratic Presidential Candidates 2024
Karen Bass Personal Life
| Name | Karen Bass |
| Profession | Politician, social worker, physician assistant, activist |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Years active (in office) | 2004 – present |
| Karen Bass Age | 69 years |
| Gender | Female |
| Date of birth | October 3, 1953 |
| Karen Bass married or not? | Divorced (1980 – 1986) |
| Karen Bass husband | Jesus Lechuga (the couple got divorced in 1986) |
| Karen Bass children | 5 (4 stepchildren and 1 dead) |
| Nationality | American |
| Residence | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Karen Bass Education | California State University, Dominguez Hills (BS) University of Southern California (MSW) |
| Parents | Wilhelmina Bass (mother) DeWitt Talmadge Bass (father) |
Karen Bass Family
Karen Bass was married to Jesus Lechuga, a latino, from 1980 to 1986 and had a daughter together. Her daughter and son-in-law were killed in a car crash in 2006.
Other than this, she also has four stepchildren that are jointly raised by Bass and Lechuga.
Political Journey of Karen Bass
Born in South L.A., raised in the Venice-Fairfax area and living Baldwin Hills, Bass has deep roots in Los Angeles. Her ideals of social justice have taken her from a county emergency room to nonprofit leadership to the halls of power in Sacramento and Washington, DC.
In 2004, Bass represented the California’s 47th Assembly district and became the only African-American woman serving in the state legislature. She continued working in the legislature till 2010, getting reelected in 2006 and 2008 before her term limit expired.
In 2010, when Congresswoman Diane Watson retired, she encouraged Bass to run for her seat. Bass confirmed her candidacy to represent California’s 33rd congressional district and won the election with over 86% of the vote. She was elected for the next term in 2012, a third term in 2014 and similarly in 2016 and 2018 as well. In 2020, Bass was shortlisted as a running mate by Joseph R. Biden Jr. during his presidential campaign.
Bass announced her candidacy for mayor of Los Angeles in the 2022 election in September 2021. Her campaign focused on the problem of homelessness and on ending homeless encampments around elementary schools, parks, beaches and other public areas.
Net worth of Richest Politicians
Karen Bass Polls & Election Results
Bass was the front-runner in the polls for most of the time owing to the late entrance of Rick Caruso, a deep-pocketed billionaire businessman, in the mayoral campaign. Bass was a very popular candidate, according to different polls, but Caruso was also admired for his development of Southern California’s best-known shopping destinations and serving on powerful boards that oversees the Los Angeles Police Department and the University of Southern California.
Both candidates were running to replace the former mayor Eric Garcetti who could not participate in re-election due to the two-term limit imposition. Karen Bass defeated Caruso in the mayor’s race in the recent results obtaining around 53% of the total votes. On December 12 when she will take an oath to succeed Eric Garcetti as Los Angeles’ 43rd mayor, Bass will become the first woman and second Black Angeleno elected to lead the city.
FAQs
$1 million
Democratic
Tom Bradley
Divorced
