Los Angeles conducts its Mayoral races via the top-2-runoff system. Plain plurality voting is used, but a second round ("runoff") election is held (a couple months later) between the top two finishers in the first round if nobody got over 50%. [The party affiliation, if any, in the table references the incumbent's voter registration, as party affiliation is not identified on ballots. Winners in bold.]
| Year | Result | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Runoff election canceled, as Antonio Villaraigosa received more than 50% of the vote in the first round. | |||||
| 2005 | Antonio Villaraigosa | 289,116 | James K. Hahn | 203,968 | ||
| 2001 | James K. Hahn | 304,791 | Antonio Villaraigosa | 264,611 | ||
| 1997 | Richard Riordan | 250,771 | Tom Hayden | 140,648 | ||
| 1993 | Richard Riordan | 314,559 | Michael Woo | 268,137 | ||
| 1989 | Runoff election canceled, as Tom Bradley received more than 50% of the vote in the first round. | |||||
| 1985 | Thomas Bradley | 313,318 | John Ferraro | 141,499 | ||
| 1981 | Thomas Bradley | 293,138 | Samuel Yorty | 148,193 | ||
| 1977 | Thomas Bradley | 288,636 | "Alan Robbins | 136,515 | ||
| 1973 | Thomas Bradley | 433,473 | Samuel Yorty | 335,857 | ||
| 1969 | Sam Yorty | 449,572 | Thomas Bradley | 394,364 | ||
| 1965 | Sam Yorty | 395,208 | James Roosevelt | 249,099 | ||
| 1961 | Sam Yorty | 276,106 | Norris Poulson | 260,381 | ||
| 1957 | Norris Poulson | 314,910 | Robert Yeakel | 142,094 | ||
| 1953 | Norris Poulson | 290,239 | Fletcher Bowron | 254,114 | ||
| 1949 | Fletcher Bowron | 238,190 | Lloyd Aldrich | 207,211 | ||
| 1941 | Fletcher Bowron | 112,556 | Stephen W. Cunningham | 90,597 | ||
| (The 1941 vote counts are with only 1750 out of 2753 precincts reporting, whereupon Cunningham conceded.) | ||||||
| 1938 | Fletcher Bowron | 232,686 | Frank L. Shaw | 122,198 | ||
| 1932 (recall) |
John Clinton Porter | 180,546 | Charles W. Dempster | 102,815 | William E. Bonelli | 74,917 |
| 1929 | John C. Porter | William E. Bonelli | ||||
| 1911 | George Alexander | Good Government Nominee | Job Harriman | Socialist | ||
| 1909 (recall) |
George Alexander | 14,043 | Fred C. Wheeler | 12,341 | Socialist | |
| 1872 | J. R. Toberman | 715 | Christobal Aguilar | 350 | ||
| 1870 | Cristobal Aguilar | 436 | Andrew Glassell | 428 | ||