Karen Bass starts as Los Angeles mayor with plan to address homelessness crisis

Karen Ruth Bass, a former physician assistant who shattered glass ceilings with her rise to a leadership post in the California legislature and later a prominent spot in Congress, took a ceremonial oath of office on Sunday as mayor of Los Angeles.

She was sworn in ceremonially by Kamala Harris, the US vice-president, former California attorney general and a longtime friend. The formal oath was administered privately by the city clerk.

Bass will be tasked with easing rising crime rates, restoring trust in a City Hall shaken by racism and corruption scandals and addressing the issue of more than 40,000 people living in trash-strewn encampments or rusty RVs that have spread into virtually every neighborhood.

Striking a tone of unity, Bass said the many, disparate arms of government must come together to confront homelessness.

Caruso would have represented a turn to the political right for the heavily Democratic city. Bass swayed voters by arguing she would be a coalition builder to help heal a troubled city of nearly 4 million.

In a surprise appearance, Stevie Wonder got the crowd dancing, playing Living for the City. He and Bass shared a hug.

Bass, 69, ran as the consensus pick of the Democratic establishment and was endorsed by Biden, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Details on the emergency order have yet to emerge, though she has said she intends to get over 17,000 homeless people into housing in her first year through a mix of interim and permanent facilities.