Can a reality show villain become mayor of one of America's largest cities?

As 1 of the stars of MTV's deed amusement The Hills successful the 2000s, Spencer Pratt rapidly became 1 of world television's favourite villains.

But could the 42-year-old erstwhile publicist-turned Celebrity Big Brother contestant soon triumph himself a caller role: politician of the 2nd largest metropolis successful America?

The Republican governmental outsider has risen successful the polls since announcing his volition successful January to tally to beryllium Los Angeles mayor, and has since go a superior contender.

A caller canvass released connected Thursday recovered that Pratt was successful a choky contention with 2 Democrats, politician Karen Bass and metropolis assembly subordinate Nithya Raman, up of Tuesday's superior vote.

The superior is non-partisan, meaning that it pits each candidates against each other, careless of party. Any campaigner who wins 50% oregon much of the ballot volition triumph the predetermination outright. If no-one reaches that threshold, the apical 2 beforehand to November's wide election.

Among the excavation of much than 3 twelve candidates who entered the race, Bass is starring with 26% enactment from apt voters, Thursday's UC Berkeley-LA Times poll suggested. Meanwhile, Raman had 25% and Pratt had 22%.

In presumption of fundraising, Pratt has blown the different 2 retired of the water, raising $2.7m (£2m) betwixt 19 April and 16 May. That is astir 10 times what Bass - a longtime LA person - raised successful the aforesaid period, and astir 7 times what Raman raised.

Pratt's occurrence arsenic a Republican successful specified a liberal-leaning metropolis has travel aft gaining wide attraction connected societal media done TikTok rants, reposted AI-generated videos that mock his opponents, and head-turning governmental adverts. His spokesperson has denied rumours that a world amusement volition produced if helium wins the vote.

"We are going to get the aureate property of Los Angeles back," Pratt says successful 1 of his run adverts: rhetoric that appears to echo the Make America Great Again (Maga) slogan of a definite different world TV star-turned politician.

Pratt entered the mayoral contention a twelvemonth aft helium mislaid his location successful the devastating fires successful the metropolis successful 2025, which were immoderate of the deadliest and astir destructive blazes successful the area's history. Much of his run has centred connected the disaster, and helium has accused Bass of failing to respond to the crisis.

He has campaigned connected a connection of fixing a breached Los Angeles, casting the metropolis astatine times arsenic unsafe and unclean, and advocating mandatory cause attraction to assistance combat homelessness successful the city.

But helium has an uphill battle, according to Efrén Pérez, a prof who teaches governmental science astatine the University of California Los Angeles. The metropolis has not had a Republican politician since 2001 - a 4th of a period ago.

And Pratt's basal and his level are inactive alternatively narrow, Pérez says.

"I'm not saying that determination isn't immoderate validity to being a spokesperson for - and imaginable improver of - the benignant of calamity that befell 1 precise affluent portion of LA," Pérez says - referring to the information that 1 of the fires struck the affluent enclave of the Pacific Palisades, wherever Pratt lived.

"But that affluent portion of LA is not typical of the full city."

For her part, Bass has been captious of Pratt passim the campaign.

"It's not conscionable that helium has nary acquisition successful metropolis government. I don't cognize that he's ever held a occupation successful his beingness different than to beryllium a world TV star," she said connected Monday astatine a run event. "I deliberation helium doesn't cognize the issues. He's operating retired of anger."

Raman, too, has sought to discredit Pratt, dubbing him an anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist. She has said helium "is not offering a realistic solution" to the issues the metropolis is facing.

Pratt has taken connected those criticisms, saying successful a caller interview: "I whitethorn not person the experience, but I person the communal consciousness to accidental this is not working."

Pratt roseate to prominence successful 2007 erstwhile helium joined the formed of The Hills, a spin-off of the MTV world amusement Laguna Beach, arsenic the fellow of Heidi Montag. His quality often ramped up play and dispersed rumours with his sometimes abrasive persona.

Pratt and Montag aboriginal married, and and they present person 2 children.

After the amusement finished successful 2010, Pratt went connected to look connected different world programmes, including Celebrity Big Brother and I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, arsenic good arsenic creating an online concern to merchantability crystals.

Marty Kaplan, a prof of entertainment, media and nine astatine the University of Southern California, says authorities has been taken implicit by entertainment, meaning Pratt has an edge.

California antecedently gave emergence to actor-turned-president Ronald Reagan and enactment star-turned-state politician Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Donald Trump, too, was famously a world TV prima earlier helium was president. The tabloid TMZ, known for its sum of celebrities, precocious opened an bureau successful Washington DC to screen politics.

"The assemblage has present been accustomed to privation to beryllium entertained," says Kaplan. "A campaigner who tin person a communicative that makes you privation to cognize what happens next, and who delivers sure-fire twists and turns and thrills, that's what we want."

Bass, who has heavy roots successful Los Angeles with a inheritance successful assemblage organising and a wealthiness of governmental experience, is conscionable "not arsenic entertaining" arsenic Pratt, Kaplan says.

"It utilized to beryllium that successful the conflict for attention, what counted was not lone bash you person a compelling message, but tin you deliver?" helium asks. "What seems to substance present is astir exclusively, 'will you committedness not to bore me?'"

Trump himself precocious gave a motion to Pratt's campaign. Asked astir it by a reporter, helium said: "I'd similar to spot him bash well. He's a character."

The president added: "I heard he's a large Maga person. He's doing well."

Whether those words of enactment volition assistance oregon wounded Pratt successful specified a wide country remains to beryllium seen, though the mayoral campaigner has sought to region himself from nationalist partisan politics. Nearly 65% of voters successful Los Angeles County voted for Trump's Democratic opponent, Kamala Harris, successful the past statesmanlike contest.

Like Trump erstwhile helium ran for the White House the archetypal time, Pratt is simply a governmental outsider. Although helium has a grade successful governmental science, helium has ne'er held bureau and "therefore isn't tainted by experience", according to Kaplan.

"Unfortunately, that besides whitethorn mean that he's not tainted by competence, and voters whitethorn beryllium much funny successful casting a protestation ballot against the problems they see… it is simply a mode of saying to the constitution 'you're fired'."

The science prof Pérez, who has worked arsenic a governmental consultant, says the lawsuit of Pratt should not beryllium surprising.

"He's a celebrity, but much than that, helium is successful that benignant of stratosphere wherever helium has the quality to pat connected radical for money," Pérez says.

"There's a large leap, massively, betwixt moving for bureau and campaigning, and each the glitter that comes with it, and past getting your hands soiled for the agelong haul," helium adds.