He’s a former reality TV host who shook up a major election by railing against the establishment and appealing to conservatives around the country.
He isn’t Donald Trump, but there’s no surprise the president was all-in on Spencer Pratt.
Spencer Pratt has been eliminated from the Los Angeles mayoral race. AP Photo/Jill Connelly
But the former The Hills star has been knocked out of the race for Los Angeles mayor, after a glacially slow vote count.
Pratt is now posting conspiracy theories alleging foul-play after he was overtaken in the vote count by progressive Democrat Nithya Raman.
Pratt sarcastically noted on X that Raman had received a “net swing of more than 43,000 votes since Tuesday”.
“43,000, huh? Where have I seen that number before…?” he said.
His post included a screenshot of a news article stating that there are 43,000 people experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles on any given night.
But Trump himself was far angrier at the result.
“Not possible for Spencer Pratt to have lost the LA runoffs after the big lead he had,” Trump said on Truth Social.
“3rd World Nation. Rigged Elections!”
Spencer Pratt lamented the loss of many precious crystals when his house burned down. AP Photo/Jill Connelly
California ballots take a long time to count, in large part because so many people vote by mail.
Under the state’s laws, any ballot can be counted if it is mailed before or on election day, which was last Tuesday.
Because Republicans are more likely to vote in person, and those ballots are counted first, the initial results tend to favour the party.
But as mail-in ballots are counted, the final results tend to shift towards Democrats.
Pratt was in what was effectively a three-way race between Democratic Mayor Karen Bass and Councilwoman Nithya Raman.
Because of Bass’ unpopularity, Democratic voters were split between her and Raman.
But the city itself is strongly Democratic-leaning, not electing a Republican mayor since 1997.
Under the California system, all candidates appear on the ballot for a primary election, and the top-two vote-getters progress to the general election.
Earlier this morning Raman was confirmed as the second-place getter, with Pratt knocked out of the race in third.
Nithya Raman ran to Karen Bass’s left in the Los Angeles mayoral race. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
“Now our fight for a healthier, safer, more affordable, and more joyful Los Angeles continues,” Raman said.
“For too long, City Hall has prioritised giving political advantage to powerful interests that fund elections.
“Meanwhile, working people pay the price in higher rents, depleted services, and a city that has stopped working for them.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson decried California’s election system.
“They are counting votes weeks after the election,” he said.
“I’m not saying it’s rigged. I’m saying it stinks to high heaven, and everybody knows that.”
Pratt drew a lot of attention for his active social media presence, posting multiple AI-generated videos to support his candidacy.
But enthusiasm for his candidacy came largely from people outside Los Angeles, rendering their support meaningless. Less than 20 per cent of his donations came from locals.
He became famous in the early 2000s with appearances on The Hills, Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County, Celebrity Big Brother and I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!
His campaign was heavily influenced by Trump-style politics, pushing for increased support for ICE, and vowing to transfer spending for homelessness non-profits to boost funding to the police department.
Pratt vowed to leave Los Angeles if he didn’t win.
