TLDR
Rumors that Donald Trump may endorse Spencer Pratt for Los Angeles mayor have become campaign fuel, with Pratt leaning on reality-TV instincts and a viral eye-roll rather than a formal statement.
Spencer Pratt is suddenly back in the center of a different kind of drama. The former “The Hills” standout, now an independent candidate for Los Angeles mayor, is riding a wave of attention after a report claimed President Donald Trump is considering endorsing him in the crowded race.
The speculation began with gossip columnist Rob Shuter on his Naughty But Nice Substack, where he reported that Trump is “quietly weighing whether to throw his support behind” Pratt. An insider told Shuter that “Trump loves celebrity candidates, and [Pratt] knows exactly how to dominate headlines.” The idea of backing Pratt, a registered Republican who is not running on the party line, has “absolutely been discussed” inside the White House, according to the report.
A White House official told DailyMail.com that any endorsement would come directly from Trump on Truth Social. So far, there has been no formal word from the president, only whispers.
One of Pratt’s rivals did not wait for confirmation. City councilwoman Nithya Raman seized on the chatter, rushing to X with a fundraising plea that framed Pratt as a “MAGA Republican mayor who lives in the Bel-Air hotel” and urged supporters to donate to prove that Los Angeles rejects that image.
Pratt answered in the language he knows best, not with a statement but with a meme. He replied on X using a gif of himself rolling his eyes and shaking his head, pulled from a recent televised debate. The moment doubled as a highlight reel. That same debate, featuring Pratt, Raman, and incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, produced an NBC Los Angeles poll in which roughly 90 percent of respondents said Pratt came out on top.
The reality veteran has been leaning into an outsider storyline that mirrors some of Trump’s own 2016 playbook. “I represent all of Los Angeles,” Pratt told NBC Los Angeles. “I do not have a campaign manager. I do not have campaign consultants. There is no political party backing me.”
Raman has labeled him a “MAGA Republican,” in part to tie him to Trump’s brand in a heavily Democratic city. Pratt pushes back on that framing, insisting he does “not represent a party” even as his profile rises off the Trump rumor cycle and his aggressive, viral style draws comparisons to the president.
The campaign has also become personal. On Fox News’ “Will Cain Show,” Pratt accused Bass of failing his neighborhood during devastating wildfires. “I am not sure if Karen Bass forgot that she let my house burn down and my parents’ house burn down,” he said, adding that he had “actual neighbors burn alive across the street from my childhood home.” He noted that he has received two community advocate awards from the Pacific Palisades community and cast his run as an extension of that grief and activism.
Inside City Hall, Bass remains the establishment favorite, with major unions backing her, a reality Pratt openly acknowledges. During the debate, he quipped that he would rather face Raman alone. “All the unions support Mayor Bass,” he said. “You think it is easier to run against the incumbent mayor with all the unions, or a random city council member who has been a failure for six years?”
For now, the Trump question hangs over the race without a definitive answer. An endorsement could supercharge Pratt’s outsider brand with some voters while hardening opposition among others. Until Trump speaks, Pratt is filling the silence himself, using a single eye-roll gif to keep his name and his next act after “The Hills” squarely in the spotlight.
Would a Trump endorsement help or hurt Spencer Pratt in Los Angeles, and does his reality TV past make him more relatable or less credible as a mayoral hopeful? Share where you stand on celebrity outsiders stepping into big-city politics.
