Raman Edges Out Pratt; Bass, Raman Advance In L.A. Mayor Race
AP called the June 8 primary for Karen Bass and Nithya Raman, denying Spencer Pratt a November runoff spot amid ballot-counting scrutiny and debates over homelessness and housing shortages.
The GuardianHow Spencer Pratt’s ‘patently absurd’ bid for Los Angeles mayor fell flat
TIME MagazineMeet Nithya Raman, the Progressive Democrat Who Secured the Second Spot in LA Mayor Race
Daily SignalSpencer Pratt Out of LA Mayor Race: Rigged Election?
New York PostOutrage as Spencer Pratt is dumped from LA mayor’s race: ‘City is lost’
Overview
The Associated Press called the mayoral primary on June 8, saying incumbent Mayor Karen Bass and City Council member Nithya Raman advanced to the November runoff while Spencer Pratt did not qualify.
The June 2 primary and a slow ballot-counting process propelled viral attention to Pratt's celebrity campaign and prompted unfounded voter-fraud claims from supporters including Donald Trump.
Pratt has not conceded and has made few public remarks, posting on social media that Raman rounded up unhoused voters and later sharing a photo likening Bass to a 'lame duck,' according to his posts.
Final tallies showed Bass at 34.3%, Raman at 28.6% and Pratt at 25.8%, amid concern over homelessness with nearly 44,000 unhoused people and a cited shortfall of 270,000 affordable housing units.
Raman and Bass will meet in the November runoff in a contest framed as progressives versus veteran Democrats, with Raman endorsed by Bernie Sanders and Bass backed by Kamala Harris and Gavin Newsom.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame Spencer Pratt’s campaign as an implausible celebrity spectacle that raises doubts about his fitness for office, emphasizing tabloid history and sensational details. They include voter frustration quotes for context, but editorial choices—loaded descriptors (“improbable,” “villain”), selective background (TMZ report, arrests, crystal business)—tilt coverage toward skepticism.