From Reality TV to Runoff: Spencer Pratt's Mayor Bid Just Got Real

It’s the plot twist nobody saw coming, and it just got way more competitive. Spencer Pratt, the reality TV personality who lost his home in the 2025 Palisades wildfires, entered the Los Angeles mayoral race as a long-shot challenger—but he wasn’t counting on getting leapfrogged by a fellow Democrat just days before the primary’s final vote count.

On Sunday, June 7, Los Angeles City Council member Nithya Raman surged past Pratt to claim second place in the primary, leaving him in third with 26.69% of the vote to her 27.12%. Incumbent Karen Bass still dominates the race with a commanding 34.68%, cementing her spot in November’s general election runoff. But here’s what matters: Raman’s momentum surge has effectively cut Pratt’s path to the general election short. Only the top two finishers advance to the November showdown, and Pratt is currently on the wrong side of that line.

The tension between these two candidates has been personal and pointed. Earlier this spring, Raman condemned what she called Pratt’s“unnecessary and reckless”campaign strategy of filming outside her home—where she lives with her young children. Pratt’s controversial ad had him visiting both candidates’residences to highlight what he framed as a disconnect between their living situations and the struggles of ordinary Angelenos. He pointed to Bass’s home and Raman’s“$3 million mansion,”contrasting them with his own circumstances: living in a trailer with his wife Heidi Montag and their two children following the wildfire loss.

What’s striking is how Pratt positioned his candidacy. At the“They Let Us Burn”public demonstration where he announced his campaign, he declared that“the system in Los Angeles isn’t struggling; it’s fundamentally broken.”He framed himself as a truth-teller ready to take on a“machine designed to protect the people at the top.”In an exclusive interview with Us Weekly on May 27, Pratt walked back some of the bravado, admitting he’d never imagined actually becoming mayor—he just wanted a platform to challenge Bass and speak uncomfortable truths.

Meanwhile, Bass took subtle jabs at Raman during a May Politico event, questioning her“ability to lead the city when she struggles being a member of the city council.”That’s the kind of internal-party friction that doesn’t help either Democrat heading into a potential general election against an unpredictable outsider.

Now, with Raman’s surge complete, the June primary results have reshuffled the deck entirely. Pratt’s path forward depends on whether late-arriving ballots can close the gap—but as of the latest count, the math is working against him. The question isn’t whether he can beat Bass anymore; it’s whether he can catch Raman before the final gavel falls.