Los Angeles just made history. When the new term begins, Asian Americans will hold all three of the city's citywide elected offices at the same time for the first time ever: mayor, city attorney and controller.

Mayor-elect Nithya Raman moved to the United States from India when she was 6. City Attorney-elect Marissa Roy is the daughter of an Indian immigrant mother. City Controller Kenneth Mejia, who is Filipino American, won a second four-year term in June.

Community leaders say the moment was decades in the making. Advocates who have spent years organizing Asian American and Pacific Islander voters in Southern California called it proof that their work has paid off.

Two of America's biggest cities led by South Asian Americans

Raman's win means the country's two largest cities will both be run by South Asian Americans. New York City is led by Zohran Mamdani, who was born to Indian parents. Raman already broke ground in 2020 as the first Asian American woman and first South Asian elected to the Los Angeles City Council.

In her first speech as mayor-elect, Raman said it moved her deeply that voters chose an immigrant to lead a city that has welcomed so many dreamers. Roy, who leaned into her heritage on the campaign trail with Bollywood music and henna at her victory party, said the results send a message about who Los Angeles is.

A growing voting force

Asian Americans are the fastest-growing population group in the country. They make up about 12% of Los Angeles residents and more than 1 million eligible voters across Los Angeles County.

Organizers said the three candidates did not treat Asian American voters as one bloc. They reached out to Chinese, Korean, Filipino and South Asian neighborhoods in different ways, including a meeting with small business owners in Little Bangladesh near Koreatown.

Mejia called the moment a huge feat and said the real point is the values the three campaigned on. Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, the first Filipina elected to the City Council, said seeing the trio win felt personal and reflects generations of people who fought to be heard.