While the mayor’s race has understandably received a lot of nationwide buzz, another local election deserves just as much attention for what it says about the past, present and future of the metropolis.

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South L.A. still conjures up images of Black L.A. in the popular imagination — understandable, since it’s the historical and political heart of the community. But its demographic reality changed a generation ago. Today, the region is majority Latino, and its District 9 — which stretches from LA Live in downtown to the outskirts of Watts — is easily the most Latino council district in the city, at 78% of its residents.

The top two vote getters right now in that race are Jose Ugarte and Estuardo Manzariegos, and most of the coverage focused on how District 9 will have its first non-Black council member in 63 years, which will also mean it’ll be the first time since 1963 that L.A. won’t have three Black council members.

Instead, District 9 will once again have a Latino representative.

South L.A.’s demographic shift

From 1949 to 1963, its council member was Edward Roybal, L.A.’s first Latino council member in modern times. He pioneered the rise of multiracial coalitions to bring equity to City Hall, a template followed by one of his campaign volunteers, future L.A. council member and Mayor Tom Bradley.

But what’s so fascinating about the District 9 battle isn’t just that two Latinos will run against each other but the type of Latinos Ugarte and Manzariegos represent.

For too long, “Latino” in L.A. has been synonymous with “Mexican American” — understandable, since the community makes up about 75% of Latino Angelenos and the community’s most influential political and cultural brokers have long been of Mexican heritage. But South L.A. shows the breadth of Latino diversity more than any other region of the city.

As I wrote in 2022 for a Times package on the 30th anniversary of the L.A. riots, you’re just as likely to find pupuserias and the blue-and-white color schemes of some Central America flags painted on businesses as you are taquerías and the Mexican tricolor. District 9 in particular has become a landing point for Indigenous people from Mexico, especially people from the southern Mexico state of Oaxaca. Recent migration has brought in Venezuelan and Colombian migrants to the area, as well.

Ugarte and Manzariegos reflect this reality.

Two immigrants vie for District 9 seat

The two are immigrants — Ugarte was born in Oaxaca while Manzariegos is from Guatemala — which makes it the first time two immigrants from Latin America will face off for a council seat in the general election. If Ugarte wins, he would become L.A.’s first Oaxacan council member — a significant achievement given that some of L.A.’s most powerful politicos ridiculed his community four years ago when the infamous City Hall audio leak upended politics in the city.

A Manzariegos victory would make him the first Central American immigrant to serve on the City Council and just its second member of Central American heritage, after former councilman Kevin de León. He would also be the second Latino in modern times to represent South L.A., following in the footsteps of his fellow Guatemalan American, current Assemblymember Sade Elhawary.

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Expect the Oaxacan and Central American communities to rally hard for their respective trailblazers, who both grew up in South L.A.. Achieving historical ethnic firsts isn’t all that makes the District 9 race so fascinating, though.

Ugarte was a longtime staffer for District 9 Councilmember Curren Price, who is leaving office because of term limits. That connection won him early support from the district’s Black establishment and labor unions, mainstream connections he will no doubt lean on through election day. Manzariegos, meanwhile, has the endorsement of the local chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, which counts three current council members as members and a fellow traveler, Councilmember Nithya Raman, looking like she’s going to face off against Mayor Karen Bass in the general election.

That’s going to look like a walk through Griffith Park compared with the desmadre Ugarte versus Manzariegos will unlock. Gonna be fun!

Today’s top stories

Nithya Raman clinches second

• Raman went from last-minute candidate in February to the L.A. mayor runoff
• Karen Bass has already secured a spot in the November election.
• Here are results from more races around California. Some are still too close to call.

More politics

• Can Democrats take the Senate? Maine voters may provide a clue.
• Trump forges ahead with D.C. cityscape transformation against growing resistance.
• A new California law aims to trigger a condo construction boom for transit commuters

California drinking water funding

• California is set to reduce funding for a program that helps communities deal with contaminated tap water.
• Clean water advocates are urging Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature to restore funding, saying otherwise progress will stall in bringing solutions to hundreds of thousands of people with unsafe water.

What else is going on

• New evidence confirms Edison’s idle line ignited Eaton fire, lawyers say.
• Temperatures in Los Angeles are expected to warm up this week, coinciding with the first game of the U.S. men’s World Cup on Friday at SoFi stadium.
• Santa Monica Mountains’ last steelhead trout unexpectedly survive Palisades fire: “These fish continue to amaze me.”
• Trump’s Education Department is backing away from addressing civil rights for Black students.
• Push to install license plate readers comes amid questions about how data are shared
• L.A. is pushing to install Flock license plate readers even as some smaller cities cut ties with the company after reports saying it shared data with ICE.

Commentary and opinions

• Business columnist Michael Hiltzik fears Musk’s SpaceX IPO could crash your 401(k).
• Political columnist George Skelton shares the secret to Xavier Becerra’s success.
• Whiny Caitlin Clark’s tired antics need to end, argues columnist Bill Plaschke.
• A year after Trump unleashed his deportation machine in L.A., we can’t let his goons win, writes columnist Gustavo Arellano.

This morning’s must-read

Other must reads

• A battle over billboards roils Inglewood
• Inside the rise of the professional reality TV star

For your downtime

Going out

• National parks: With Highway 1 open, Big Sur braces for its busiest summer in years.
• Restaurants: The delicious rewards of seeking out Cantonese micro-cuisines in L.A.

Staying in

• Sports: 2026 World Cup guide: Here’s the full TV schedule, players to watch and team breakdowns.
• Books: Award-winning songwriter, musician and film composer David Baerwald turns a trove of family spy secrets and a beloved violin into his debut novel.
• Recipe: Here’s a recipe for Czechoslovakian nut bars.
• ✏️ Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and jigsaw games.

A question for you: What’s your favorite summer beach getaway?

Email us at [email protected], and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.

And finally … your photo of the day

Today’s great photo is from Times contributor Scott Strazzante at a Rush reunion concert, which became a moving tribute to Neil Peart and Anika Nilles’ coronation at Kia Forum.

Have a great day, from the Essential California team

Hailey Branson-Potts, staff writer
Hugo Martín, assistant editor, fast break desk
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Andrew Campa, weekend writer
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters

How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [email protected]. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.

Read more Can Democrats take the Senate? Maine voters may provide a clue