The next Los Angeles mayoral debate has been canceled after dark horse candidate Spencer Pratt eviscerated his Democrat rivals last week.
City Councilmember Nithya Raman pulled out of a Los Angeles mayoral candidate forum scheduled for Wednesday, which was set to air on FOX 11, prompting its cancellation, debate organizers announced on Monday.
The cancellation comes just three days after Mayor Karen Bass withdrew from the event organized by the League of Women Voters and the Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs, following a heated debate on May 6 that viewers say Pratt had handily won.
'Raman also withdrew, indicating she had agreed to participate in order to debate the incumbent mayor. With only two candidates remaining, the event partners have agreed not to proceed,' the organizers wrote in a statement.
The group previously confirmed that Pratt had declined the invitation earlier because of a scheduling conflict. Bass is now scheduled to travel to California's capital, Sacramento, on Wednesday, instead of attending the forum, which was the last scheduled debate prior to the June 2 mayoral primary.
Pratt's mayoral campaign continues to gain momentum after he was praised for his performance against Bass and Raman in the last debate. The ex-reality star turned mayoral hopeful said he would much rather face Raman alone in the election without Bass.
'Mayor Bass and I are definitely not working together. I blame this person for burning my house down,' Pratt said. 'All the unions support Mayor Bass. You think it's easier to run against the incumbent mayor with all the unions, or a random city councilmember who has been a failure for six years?'
Pratt has regularly criticized Bass over her handling of the LA wildfires that destroyed thousands of homes, including his $3.8 million property that he shared with wife Heidi Montag, across Southern California last January.
About 90 percent of viewers declared Pratt the winner of the debate, according to an NBC LA poll. He was seen as a long-shot candidate when he launched his campaign in January, but his odds of winning the mayor's office skyrocketed after a media blitz and a breakout debate against his woke rivals.
On Tuesday, an attack ad against Pratt was mocked for unwittingly serving as an endorsement of the former reality star. The broadside, released by the LA County Federation of Labor, went viral on social media as it tried to criticize Pratt's supposed hardline stances on homelessness, policing, and union power - even though many voters will find them sensible.
'Republican Spencer Pratt is the last thing Los Angeles needs for mayor,' it said. The ad continued: 'Pratt opposes using taxpayer money to build brand new houses for unhoused neighbors, saying it's time for the homeless to get help or get out.' Despite Los Angeles's issues with widespread crime and open-air drug taking, the ad also appeared to believe voters would be turned away by Pratt's vow to step up policing across the city.
'Pratt thinks LA needs thousands more police officers rather than more social workers,' it said. It added: 'Republican Spencer Pratt thinks public employee unions should have less power, not more... LA is on the right track and needs to stay the course. Vote no on Republican Spencer Pratt.'
But the broadside was ridiculed as many argued the messaging could help the former The Hills star's campaign. Texas Senator Ted Cruz led the mockery, writing in an X post: 'This attack ad could well elect Pratt.' 'I don't think I've ever seen an attack ad that comes across as an endorsement like this one,' another critic said on X.
