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Reality TV star enters mayor's race

Los Angeles Times

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January 08, 2026

Spencer Pratt, a Palisades fire survivor and Bass critic, vows to 'expose the system.'

- BY NOAH GOLDBERG, HAILEY BRANSON-POTTS

Reality TV star enters mayor's race

SPENCER PRATT and Heidi Montag sued the city after losing their house.

(C FLANIGAN ImageSpace/Sipa USA)

Spencer Pratt, a reality television star who lost his home in the Palisades fire and then emerged as a sharp critic of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom, announced Wednesday that he will run for mayor.

The former star of "The Hills" has spent much of the last year firing off social media posts blaming the mayor and governor for the Palisades fire, which killed 12 people and burned more than 6,800 homes.

Pratt, who has never run for office before, made his announcement at the “They Let Us Burn” event in Pacific Palisades on the one-year anniversary of the fire.

“We're going to expose the system. We're going into every dark corner of L.A. politics and disinfecting the city with our light,” he said to a crowd of hundreds, many of whom cheered.

Former L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner, who is running against Bass, has also attacked the mayor's performance on the fire, saying she has not accepted responsibility for the city’s failures.

Community organizer Rae Huang, who is running from Bass’ left, has offered her own critique, saying the mayor has engaged in too much finger-pointing.

Still unclear is whether real estate developer Rick Caruso — another outspoken critic of Bass on the fire —will launch a second mayoral bid. Bass defeated him in 2022 by a comfortable margin.

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