LOS ANGELES (AP) - The Latest on the election in Los Angeles (all times local):
10:15 p.m.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has claimed a second term at City Hall.
The 46-year-old Democrat easily outdistanced 10 rivals and had an insurmountable lead late Tuesday. He won 81 percent of the first 70,000 votes counted while his nearest opponent had under 8 percent.
Garcetti’s campaign benefited from an improving economy, and he helped secure new funds for rail lines and pushed for relaxed business taxes.
But the city has also seen a spike in violent crime, while some neighborhoods are uneasy with L.A.’s increasing density and height.
Measure S, a proposal to restrict larger real estate projects that Garcetti opposed, was losing 60 percent to 40 percent after early returns.
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9 p.m.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has a commanding lead in his bid for a second term.
Early returns after Tuesday’s polls closed showed Garcetti garnering 80 percent of the vote.
Mitchell Jack Schwartz was in second with nearly 8 percent, and eight other candidates had 3 percent or less.
In the voting for the city’s ballot measures, the fiercely contested proposal known as Measure S, intended to restrict larger real estate projects, is losing so far. Nearly 60 percent of early ballots voted “no” on the measure.
A quarter-cent sales tax increase to pay for homeless services
A Los Angeles County measure that asks for a quarter-cent sales tax increase to pay for homeless services was getting 61 percent of the early vote, short of the two-thirds it needs to pass.
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12 a.m.
Los Angeles voters are picking a mayor and could slap restrictions on development in the midst of a building boom.
Mayor Eric Garcetti appears on track to earn a return trip to City Hall in Tuesday’s election after a campaign against 10 little-known challengers.
The fiercely contested proposal known as Measure S is intended to restrict larger real estate projects.
Its supporters say the city too often favors developers whose luxury high-rises drive out lower-income residents while increasing congestion.
The slow-growth proposal challenges Garcetti’s vision for building thousands of new apartments clustered around train stations.
Opponents warn it would kill new housing.
Voters also are considering new regulations for the city’s marijuana industry as recreational pot use becomes legal next year.
The election is expected to have a sparse turnout.
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