Spencer Pratt Advances to LA Mayoral Runoff Against Karen Bass

In a development that underscores just how fractured Los Angeles politics have become, Spencer Pratt—the *Hills* alum and fire survivor—is heading to a November showdown with incumbent Mayor Karen Bass after neither candidate secured the 50-percent threshold needed to win outright in the June 2 primary.

Bass came out on top with around 35 percent of the vote, positioning herself as the heavy favorite for the general election runoff. But Pratt’s roughly 30 percent showing was enough to edge out LA City Councilwoman Nithya Raman, who landed in third place with around 23 percent. With a substantial pile of absentee ballots still being counted, the race hasn’t been officially called—though Pratt has already declared victory of sorts, telling reporters on June 3 that God apparently wanted him to have five more months to expose what he views as the mayor’s failures.

His journey to this point is rooted in real loss. After his and wife Heidi Montag’s home was destroyed in the 2025 Palisades Fire, Pratt announced his candidacy in January, framing his bid as less a political campaign and more a mission to expose what he called a fundamentally broken system designed to protect the wealthy while ordinary Angelenos“drown in toxic smoke and ash.”That messaging resonated enough to move him past a crowded field and into the general election.

The celebrity split on Pratt’s candidacy has been telling. Donald Trump, Katharine McPhee, David Foster, and Candace Cameron Bure backed him, while Drew Carey, Jimmy Kimmel, and Chelsea Handler were vocal critics. Even his own sister, Stephanie Pratt, initially doubted his qualifications before later reversing course and saying she was wrong to count him out. Amid conservative endorsements, Pratt insisted he’s running as an independent, not a Republican—a distinction that matters in a nonpartisan race, though his party registration since 2020 tells a different story.

What happens next depends entirely on whether Angelenos believe Pratt’s outsider energy and fire-powered grievance can translate into a governing vision, or whether Bass’s incumbency and relative establishment credibility will hold up under five months of relentless scrutiny. Either way, this race has already redefined what a mayoral campaign in LA looks like when a reality-TV personality with a personal stake becomes a serious contender.