Pratt Falls Into Third Place in LA Mayor’s Race, Likely Pitting Incumbent Bass Against Progressive Councilwoman

Former reality television star Spencer Pratt has fallen into third place in the primary election for Los Angeles mayor, likely denying him a spot on the general election ballot in November. The incumbent, Mayor Karen Bass, is likely to face off against a progressive city councilwoman, Nithya Raman. In an unlikely turn, Mr. Pratt, who decided to run for the office after expressing frustration with the slow pace of rebuilding the fire-struck Pacific Palisades where his home burned down, captured attention earlier this year when an online supporter began creating AI-generated ads depicting him as a superhero willing to stand up to Ms. Bass and other top California Democrats. Mr. Pratt, a registered Republican who was running as an independent, argued during the campaign that he was the only person capable of cracking down on crime in the city or tackling the homelessness crisis with a forced treatment program. Mr. Pratt’s performance in the debate, where he went after both Mses. Bass and Raman over issues like crime, homelessness, and drug use, earned him praise from President Trump, who called him a big “MAGA” person. When votes began rolling in last Tuesday after polls closed, Mr. Pratt quickly outpaced Ms. Raman.On Sunday, however, Mr. Pratt lost his spot to Ms. Raman, who had been trailing him by as much as seven points before mailed ballots were counted. That led many to cry foul over the state’s voting system. California’s system allows voters to mail ballots as late as Election Day, leading to delayed arrivals of ballots and a longer duration for vote-counting. Mr. Trump and other Pratt supporters said the system is ripe for fraud. “It’s four days (later) and they aren’t even close to coming up with (a result),” the president said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “You know why they are doing that? Because they are cheating on the election.” Asked if he had evidence of cheating, Mr. Trump said all one had to do was “look” at the vote-counting process. Mr. Trump’s Justice Department disagrees, however. Reacting to a claim that Mr. Pratt received zero votes in a mailed batch of ballots counted over the weekend, the interim U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, Bill Essayli, called the allegations baseless. “There was a claim circulating on social media about an election night ballot update at the Los Angeles Registrar of Voters where one candidate received zero votes. We reviewed official county records. The claim is false,” Mr. Essayli wrote in a statement on X. “Each candidate received votes in every update.”“My office will continue monitoring the election counting process and will follow the evidence wherever it leads,” he said. X owner Elon Musk has also amplified the allegations of voter fraud, reposting and responding to multiple posts online claiming — without evidence — that the election is being stolen from Mr. Pratt. After Mr. Pratt joked about the protracted length of time needed for the vote count, Congressman Ted Lieu, a Democrat, responded that it’s not a conspiracy, it’s just a matter of math.“Approximate number of registered Democrats: 1,224,737. Approximate number of registered Republicans: 326,292. This is why you won’t make the top two,” he posted on X.Ballot counting must be completed by June 15 and county officials must make the results official by July 2, before the secretary of state can certify them on July 10. As of Sunday evening, Ms. Raman leads Mr. Pratt by about 3,000 votes, or 0.4 percent. Ms. Bass has retained her first-place spot, winning just under 35 percent of the vote thus far. If the percentages hold, Ms. Bass and Ms. Raman will face off in the November general election.

Pratt Falls Into Third Place in LA Mayor’s Race, Likely Pitting Incumbent Bass Against Progressive Councilwoman

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