Explore Los Angeles voter guides, local civic context and official resources for City of Los Angeles campaigns, with dated population and registration facts.
At a glance: Los Angeles is an incorporated city in Los Angeles County. Population: 3,806,201 (California Department of Finance estimate as of January 1, 2026). Registered voters: 2,217,160 (California Secretary of State, as of September 4, 2026).
The City of Los Angeles is California's largest city and a municipality distinct from Los Angeles County, which administers elections for dozens of other cities and unincorporated communities. The city elects a Mayor, City Attorney, City Controller and fifteen City Council members from geographic districts, and the Los Angeles Unified School District board is elected separately. City, county, school-district and special-district boundaries all differ, so an LA address alone does not say which offices appear on a particular ballot. Within the city, the City Council is the governing body under the City Charter: it enacts ordinances subject to the Mayor's approval or veto, adopts or modifies the budget the Mayor proposes, confirms mayoral appointments and orders elections. The city's own description of these powers is a useful starting point for understanding where a municipal decision is actually made. Municipal elections are administered by the Los Angeles City Clerk's Election Division, which publishes candidate and measure information, petition status, election archives and voter information in thirteen languages. The City Clerk's page listed the November 3, 2026 General Municipal Election at the time this page was checked. Voter registration, vote-by-mail and voting locations are handled by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk through LAVote.gov — a separate agency from the City Clerk. Los Angeles also has its own campaign-finance regime. The LA City Ethics Commission administers city campaign filing and disclosure requirements that are separate from state FPPC filings, so a city candidate works with both systems. For any particular race, the City Clerk's municipal elections pages and the Ethics Commission's filings are the authoritative sources; nothing on this page assumes which offices appear on a future ballot.
The LA City Clerk's Election Division administers municipal elections and publishes candidate, measure and petition information. Voter registration and vote-by-mail are handled separately by the LA County Registrar-Recorder through LAVote.gov.
No. The city is one municipality inside the county, which also contains 87 other incorporated cities and many unincorporated communities. City, county, school-district and special-district offices are elected separately.
City candidates file under the LA City Ethics Commission's campaign-finance program, which is separate from state FPPC filings. The Ethics Commission publishes the applicable forms and rules.
Fifteen members elected from geographic districts. Under the City Charter, the Council enacts ordinances subject to the Mayor's approval or veto, adopts the budget and confirms mayoral appointments.
2,217,160 (California Secretary of State, as of September 4, 2026).
Los Angeles USD.
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