A former reality television star's sudden foray into politics spectacularly unravelled in real time during a live television interview, after she discovered the election she was campaigning for was years away.
Live On-Air Realisation Scuttles Campaign
Farrah Abraham, the 34-year-old best known for MTV's Teen Mom, abruptly terminated her newly declared bid to become mayor of Austin, Texas. The dramatic U-turn occurred during an appearance on TMZ Live, when hosts Harvey Levin and Charles Latibeaudiere informed her the next mayoral contest is in 2028, not 2026 as she believed.
Abraham had taken to social media earlier in the week to announce her candidacy and had filed official paperwork, promoting the campaign as if the race was imminent. The awkward exchange unfolded as Levin instructed producers to contact Austin City Hall for confirmation while Abraham remained on the video call.
"So, Farrah, we just got this in our ear, the election is in 2028," Levin told her. "So I think you may have jumped the gun here." The revelation appeared to catch Abraham completely off guard.
Swift Retreat and a Pivot to City Council
The on-air realisation triggered an immediate political retreat. Within hours, Abraham deleted her campaign announcement posts, amended her official filings, and abandoned the mayoral race entirely.
Records from the Austin Office of the City Clerk show a swift change. Abraham initially filed paperwork on January 14 listing 'Mayor of Austin'. By the very next day, January 15, the filing was amended to read 'District 5, November 2026'. This signals a pivot to a potential run for the Austin City Council instead.
Her social media biography was quietly updated to reference 'District 5', further cementing the change in plan. "So I'm not running for mayor," Abraham later told Fox News. "It's local District Five, which I think is great."
A Political Outsider Narrative
In a subsequent statement, Abraham cast herself as an outsider candidate, stating: "I've faced Hollywood drama, cancel culture and online trolls and I'm still here - ready to fight for Austin families who don't have lobbyists or insider access." She added, "It's time for a survivor mom who knows how to hustle and make real change."
She first entered the public eye in 2009 on MTV's 16 and Pregnant and became a central figure on Teen Mom. Austin's current mayor, Kirk Watson, was elected in 2024 and is serving a standard four-year term, with the city charter dictating the next election for the position in 2028.
TMZ later summarised the incident bluntly on social media, tweeting that Abraham appeared to learn the correct election year from their show itself.
