L.A. Mayoral Rival Torches Spencer Pratt Over 'Reckless' Campaign Ad
The Hills alum Spencer Pratt sparked backlash in the Los Angeles mayoral race after filming a campaign ad outside rival Nithya Raman’s home — a move she calls a reckless stunt near her young kids.
Spencer Pratt is running for Los Angeles mayor, and he just dropped a campaign ad that parked itself right in the middle of a line you don’t usually cross: he filmed outside an opponent’s house. Not subtle, and yes, that’s exactly what he did.
The ad that lit the match
On Wednesday, April 29, Pratt released a spot where he drives to the homes of two rivals — current Mayor Karen Bass and City Councilmember Nithya Raman — and contrasts those addresses with his own setup: a trailer where he says he’s been living with wife Heidi Montag and their two kids since their house burned down in the 2025 Palisades Fire. The message is blunt: he argues Bass and Raman don’t have to live with the problems he says they helped cause, while he does. He also promises to bring back what he calls the golden age of Los Angeles.
The ad exploded online — nearly 9 million views since Wednesday — and even Meghan McCain chimed in to predict it could be the thing that carries him across the finish line.
Raman: this crossed a line
Raman, 44, was not amused to find a camera crew on her residential street. Through a statement to Us Weekly on Thursday, April 30, via her 'Nithya for Mayor' campaign, she called the move out for going too far around her family.
'Filming outside my home, where I live with my young children, feels unnecessary and reckless.'
Us Weekly said it reached out to Pratt for comment.
Where the race stands right now
Pratt’s fundraising and polling have been climbing lately, but he still has to get past Raman to challenge the sitting mayor, Bass, 72. Raman has been warning voters that Pratt isn’t just a stunt — she points to his platform on immigration as a real risk for the city’s immigrant communities. After The Daily Show cracked that he’s the kind of candidate who makes some viewers remember him with an 'oh yeah... ew,' she told supporters not to underestimate him, framing him as a MAGA-aligned Republican who wants to work with ICE and undo Los Angeles’s sanctuary policy.
What Pratt is actually promising
In February, Pratt made it clear he plans to cooperate directly with the federal government on immigration enforcement if he wins. He blasted Bass for what he called defying federal law for politics, saying that approach has fueled confusion and instability. His pitch: a firmer (he says humane) partnership with federal authorities, with violent offenders taken off the streets and law-abiding families allowed to live without fear.
How he got here
Pratt launched his campaign in January at a rally marking one year since the Palisades Fire — a demonstration pointedly titled 'They Let Us Burn.' His stump speech there was pure disruption: City Hall isn’t just struggling, it’s broken; it protects the people at the top while everyone else chokes on smoke and ash; and business as usual is a death sentence. In short, he’s running as the guy who’ll flip the table.
Endorsements and blowback (including from his own family)
He’s collected support from Joe Rogan, his former The Hills castmate Kristin Cavallari, and podcaster Nick Viall. The most high-profile detractor so far? His sister. On February 14, Stephanie Pratt, 40, unloaded on X, telling Angelenos not to vote for him. She accused him of chasing fame and a book deal, floated that the Palisades should have its own mayor and police if anything, said she’d rather see him run a tiny slice of L.A. than the whole city of roughly 4 million, and added she’d be impressed if any Republican could actually flip Los Angeles. She also urged voters to pick someone with real work experience and took a shot at his past associations, saying the city needs serious help.
Key dates to watch
- January: Pratt announces his run at the 'They Let Us Burn' rally marking one year since the Palisades Fire.
- February: He lays out plans to work directly with the feds on immigration enforcement and slams Bass’s approach.
- Wednesday, April 29: The viral campaign ad drops, featuring stops outside Bass’s and Raman’s homes and highlighting his family’s trailer living situation since 2025.
- Thursday, April 30: Raman publicly condemns the ad’s shoot outside her house in a statement to Us Weekly.
- Tuesday, June 2: L.A. mayoral primary.
- Tuesday, November 3: Runoff if no one wins a majority in June.
Whatever you think of the tactic, filming at an opponent’s front door is a wild escalation for a local race. It worked online. Now we find out if it works at the polls.