There are still votes to be counted, but Janice Hahn held a commanding lead in her bid for another term on the L.A. County Board of Supervisors, prompting her to declare victory late Friday.
Hahn, who faced two challengers, including former Sheriff Alex Villanueva, noted in a news release that she had won more than 56% of the votes counted so far — enough to win the seat outright and avoid a runoff with her closest opponent.
"I've dedicated my life's work to fighting for working families, women, seniors, young people as well as marginalized and disadvantaged communities, " the statement read. "This victory is for them.
"For four more years, communities across our district will have a voice and a warrior working to expand housing that is affordable, raise wages for workers, expand mental health services, urgently house the unhoused, protect clean air and water, safeguard reproductive freedom, help small businesses compete and grow, while building safer neighborhoods for all."
Hahn also referenced Villanueva directly in the statement, calling him a "two-time loser." Villanueva lost his re-election bid for sheriff to Robert Luna in 2022.
"For the second time in two years, voters have rejected his lies, lawlessness and failures," Hahn said in the statement. "They also repudiated his unethical and deceitful attacks on the Hahn family name. It's clear that voters across the 4th District agree with L.A. County's designation of keeping Alex Villanueva on the do-not-hire list."
Shortly after Hahn made similar statements to Fox 11 Los Angeles, Villanueva posted on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter:
"Losers use taxpayer dollars to bribe voters, conceal their crass nepotism, and then refuse to defend their failing record in a public debate. That’s you @SupJaniceHahn"
He added: “The people who cast the votes don't decide an election, the people who count the votes do” — a quote he and others have attributed to Joseph Stalin.
The five-member L.A. County Board of Supervisors oversees a county of some 10 million people.
Live results
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The California Secretary of State's Office certified the final vote tallies on April 12, marking an official end to the March 5, 2024 Primary Election.
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Voter Game Plan will be back in the fall to help you prepare for the Nov. 5 General Election.
How we got here
Hahn's lead in at the polls follows a long-standing pattern, as it is rare for an incumbent supervisor to lose their seat in an election. The last time a sitting supervisor lost to a challenger was 1980 as sentiments leaned more conservative going into the Reagan years.
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In an Instagram Live session Thursday night that lasted nearly an hour, Villanueva discussed his disapproval of L.A. County District Attorney George Gascón, accused local press of colluding with the political establishment and claimed that Hahn “had ballot harvesting down to a science.”
There has been no evidence of ballot harvesting in the California primary election.
While he acknowledged he was trailing Hahn in the votes, Villanueva made it clear the election was not over for him.
“If she’s [Hahn] expecting some kind of concession or a phone call, she’s never going to get it,” Villanueva said.
“We’ll take it day by day,” he said.
As of Friday, Hahn led Villanueva 56% to 29%. John Cruikshank, the third candidate in the race, had 14% of the votes.
The former sheriff, who clashed regularly with supervisors during his term as sheriff, ran on promises to hold the board accountable, claiming that the five-member board was failing on homelessness and public safety. He also made claims of supervisor corruption during his campaign, calling for more transparency in county contracts.
Villanueva faced wide-ranging criticism during his time heading up one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the country. Critics said he downplayed the problem of deputy gangs within his department and failed to cooperate with supervisors and the Civilian Oversight Commission.
Supporters, like retired Sheriff’s Sgt. Ralph Ruedas, were hopeful Villanueva would bring a new perspective to the board.
“The Board of Supervisors needs to be changed up. We’ve been under one rule for way too long and nothing’s been accomplished. And I think what he’s going to bring with him is some better monitoring and controls of the budget,” Ruedas said from the Villanueva watch party at a barbecue restaurant in Whittier Tuesday night.
A small group of Cruikshank supporters also gathered on election night at The Green Onion, a beloved local restaurant in San Pedro. Cruikshank, who leads two engineering firms, said that if elected he would center the needs of working people and take a more practical approach to issues such as homelessness and addressing traffic in the harbor cities.
Supporters said he represented their conservative values and a break from the status quo of career politicians. He told LAist that if defeated, he would run again in four years, when Hahn will term out of the District 4 seat.
About District 4
The District 4 race is the first since the district’s new boundaries were finalized in late 2021.
Hahn, who was elected in 2016, is seeking re-election in a district that now stretches from Torrance and Rancho Palos Verdes east to Long Beach and north to the communities of Vernon, Downey and Whittier. One critical issue in much of District 4 is housing affordability, as once-affordable communities are rapidly gentrifying. Homelessness, public safety, and transportation are also key here, as are issues of equity and access to services.
Read more about the job expected of whoever ultimately becomes District 4 supervisor. ▶
About the candidates
Janice Hahn: Hahn is the current Los Angeles County Supervisor running for reelection in District 4.
She previously served on the L.A. City Council and in Congress as a member of the House of Representatives. Her father was the legendary politician Kenneth Hahn, who served on the Board of Supervisors for 40 years. Her brother Jim Hahn was mayor of L.A.
Alex Villanueva: Villanueva served as sheriff of L.A. County from 2018 to 2022, when voters declined to give him a second four-year term. Before being elected sheriff, he was a deputy sheriff for more than 30 years.
John Cruikshank: Cruikshank is the mayor of Rancho Palos Verdes and president and CEO of two Southern California engineering firms.(
What’s next
The county Registrar of Voters will update the vote count each afternoon around 5 p.m.
A candidate needs more than 50% of the vote to win the election outright.
Tracking your ballot
You can track the status of your ballot:
If your mail-in ballot is rejected for any reason (like a missing or mismatched signature), your county registrar must contact you to give you a chance to fix it. In Los Angeles County, the registrar will send you a notification by mail and you have until a fixed date to reply and "cure" your ballot.
How we're covering this election
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Early voters and mail-in ballots have fundamentally reshaped how votes are counted and when election results are known.
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Our priority will be sharing outcomes and election calls only when they have been thoroughly checked and vetted. To that end, we will report when candidates concede and otherwise rely on NPR and The Associated Press for race calls. We will not report the calls or projections of other news outlets. You can find more on NPR and The AP's process for counting votes and calling races here, here and here.
Ask us a question
LAist reporter Erin Stone contributed to this report.
