LOS ANGELES — Reality television personality Spencer Pratt launched a campaign for Los Angeles mayor ahead of the June 2 nonpartisan primary, deploying AI-generated videos and social media attacks against incumbent Mayor Karen Bass. A candidate who surpasses 50% of the vote becomes mayor outright; otherwise, the top two finishers advance to a November runoff.

Pratt has amplified AI-generated videos depicting lightsaber duels between himself and Bass, as well as clips portraying him as Batman descending on a burning Los Angeles. His campaign has tapped freelance "clippers" to edit short social media snippets of him criticizing city leaders, and he has posted direct-to-camera videos condemning Bass' response to the Pacific Palisades wildfires that destroyed his family home. He has blamed city leaders for a deterioration of residents' quality of life, saying the city was battered by fires, homelessness and crime, and has spoken about nonexistent "super meth" on Los Angeles streets while pushing false narratives about California lawmakers' response to the Palisades Fire.

Pratt described Bass as "the mayor who let the town burn down" and accused Bass and council member Nithya Raman of "running a grift with the Homeless Industrial Complex." He promised to clear out street encampments by mass-arresting people living on the streets. During a recent debate, he said, "I do not represent a party."

"Socialists in LA city government are stealing your money," Pratt said. He has also filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles city government and the Department of Water and Power alleging failure to properly maintain a water reservoir, which according to court filings would have helped prevent last year's wildfires from destroying his home.

Before running for office, Pratt had millions of social media followers, and he has received an endorsement from podcaster Joe Rogan. Elon Musk has repeatedly reshared and replied to Pratt's content on X to his 240 million followers, and conservative influencers Laura Loomer, Ben Shapiro, and Benny Johnson have reposted his campaign content.

A recent poll showed Bass with 30% support, Pratt with 22%, and Raman with 19%. "I think that he is tapping into a general sense of anger that people have, not just in Los Angeles, but in many other places around our country," Bass said.

Dan Cassino, a professor of government at Fairleigh Dickinson University, said Pratt's messaging resonates with particular online audiences. "These are the sorts of things that play very well in red-pilled forums where there's this idea that everyone is in control of their lives and 'we need to embrace hard truths out there that they won't teach you in school,'" he said.