{"id":63178,"date":"2026-08-09T14:27:33","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T14:27:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/63178\/"},"modified":"2026-08-09T14:27:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T14:27:33","slug":"pratt-spent-big-on-luxury-hotels-and-security-campaign-reports-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/63178\/","title":{"rendered":"Pratt spent big on luxury hotels and security, campaign reports show"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

During the Los Angeles mayoral primary, Spencer Pratt put out a video saying he was living in a trailer<\/a> on the burned-out lot where his Pacific Palisades home once stood \u2014 a claim that was soon debunked by TMZ, which reported that he was actually staying at the Hotel Bel-Air.<\/p>\n

While Pratt\u2019s mayoral bid has come to a close, his campaign\u2019s final spending on luxury hotels \u2014 including the Hotel Bel-Air \u2014 is now coming to light. <\/p>\n

Pratt spent just under $71,000 on hotels for himself, his campaign staff and his fundraising operation, mostly at the Hotel Bel-Air and the Four Seasons Hotel in New York, according to recently released campaign finance filings in the mayoral race<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The former reality TV star has a history of lavish spending on hotels, according to his memoir, <\/a>\u201cThe Guy You Loved to Hate,\u201d where he recounts staying at the Four Seasons in Costa Rica for a month in 2010. He said the hotel stay was \u201cbleeding him dry.\u201d <\/p>\n

The tens of thousands of dollars Pratt\u2019s campaign spent on hotels represent just a fraction of the more than $3 million Pratt\u2019s campaign spent overall, including hundreds of thousands to campaign strategy firms and more than $200,000 to the company Black Llama Inc. for billboards. Pratt had AI-designed billboards placed across the city. <\/p>\n

Pratt also spent more than $180,000 on private security firm Delta Special Operations Corp., almost entirely in the final month before the June 3 primary. <\/p>\n

Delta Special Operations charges $650 per day to provide a single security officer in Los Angeles, but also offers a higher level of \u201cexecutive protection.\u201d Pratt has said he faced threats during his candidacy.<\/p>\n

Pratt placed third in the primary, behind Councilmember Nithya Raman and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass, who will square off in the Nov. 3 general election. Raman\u2019s campaign reported spending about $1,000 on security, while Bass has security provided by the city. <\/p>\n

Building out her support<\/p>\n

Raman secured what could be one of her most significant endorsements of the entire election cycle this week, pulling in the support of the Western States Regional Council of Carpenters.<\/p>\n

The endorsement from the carpenters union marks a sharp turn for the labor group, which backed Bass in 2022. The union committed more than $2 million to independent expenditure groups supporting Bass\u2019 candidacy in 2022, paying for television ads that ran in advance of the general election.<\/p>\n

During the primary, Raman and independent group supporting her focused on ads on social media and streaming platforms, which are cheaper than traditional television ads. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe will be matching the same energy and we\u2019ll have same type of commitment as when we endorsed Bass. We don\u2019t plan on holding back,\u201d said Pete Rodriguez, the second general vice president of the international union.<\/p>\n

Rodriguez said the union would spend significantly to support Raman, though he did not give a figure.<\/p>\n

Bass has dominated labor endorsements throughout the campaign. She has secured more than two dozen endorsements from influential labor unions including the Police Protective League, which represents rank and file police officers in the LAPD, and SEIU 721, which represents public sector workers at the airport and in street services, among other departments. She also has the backing of the powerful Los Angeles Federation of Labor, a coalition of unions (Bass calls its leader, Yvonne Wheeler, \u201cThe Beyonc\u00e9 of Labor\u201d).<\/p>\n

\u201cWorkers are overwhelmingly behind Karen Bass … because she delivers real results,\u201d said the mayor\u2019s campaign spokesperson, Alex Stack. \u201cResults like building more affordable housing immediately to drive down rents, mortgages, and the cost of housing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rodriguez said one major issue that caused the carpenters union to break with Bass was the mayor\u2019s failure to include higher labor standards in the codified version of Executive Directive 1, which fast-tracked some affordable housing applications.<\/p>\n

That law was passed by the council and Raman voted in favor of the law that codified the mayor\u2019s directive. <\/p>\n

Raman told The Times in a statement that she stood by her vote, but that she appreciated the union\u2019s ability to work with legislators to enact legislation that \u201ccombines density with higher labor standards.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The DSA endorsement …<\/p>\n

Raman could get another key and much-discussed endorsement later this month. <\/p>\n

The Los Angeles chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America is once again considering endorsing her for mayor. The endorsement would bring doorknockers for Raman and could bring more national attention to the race.<\/p>\n

An internal petition shared with The Times is circulating in the group and needs just 50 signatures by Aug. 8 in order for the consideration of Raman to go to a vote. Raman would then need 60% of the vote at an Aug. 22 chapter meeting in order to win the endorsement.<\/p>\n

\u201cNithya Raman is running an insurgent left-wing campaign for the mayor\u2019s office against Karen Bass and L.A.\u2019s unpopular status quo Democratic establishment,\u201d the petition reads. \u201cWill an insurgent Left seize control of our city government to build a Los Angeles for its working class? Or will the establishment fend off this insurgency and deepen its power?\u201d<\/p>\n

After jumping into the race on the last possible day in February, Raman was not endorsed by the left-wing organization<\/a> in the primary. The group instead \u201crecommended\u201d her \u2014 a status that means the DSA wouldn\u2019t actively campaign on her behalf but urged voters to cast their ballots for Raman. <\/p>\n

Raman was endorsed by the group in both her council campaigns, but her late entry came after DSA had made its endorsements.<\/p>\n

The group considered reopening its endorsement process for either Raman or Rae Huang \u2014 who like Raman is a member of the DSA \u2014 but ultimately decided to focus on other down ballot races in the primary.<\/p>\n

DSA-LA declined to say whether the petition had gained the requisite number of signatures for a vote. <\/p>\n

State of play<\/p>\n

\u2014 LINEAGE LEGISLATION: Los Angeles city and county officials unveiled a slate of measures<\/a> aimed at speeding recovery, increasing corporate accountability and expanding financial assistance for residents and businesses affected by the June fire at the Lineage cold food storage facility. <\/p>\n

\u2014 PRICED OUT: Councilmember Curren Price\u2019s motion to get his perjury and embezzlement case dropped was denied Friday by a Los Angeles Superior Court judge. Price\u2019s lawyers maintain that he did not knowingly vote on city contracts for real estate developers that contracted with his wife. The judge argued there was \u201cample evidence, albeit circumstantial, that this was a scheme and not just happenstance.\u201d The outgoing council member\u2019s next court date is set for October.<\/p>\n

\u2014 E-BIKES UNDER FIRE: The council\u2019s Rules Committee passed a motion Tuesday that asks the city\u2019s Department of Transportation to come up with ways to regulate e-bikes, including who can ride them and how. The measure next goes to the ways to regulate e-bikes<\/a>Public Safety Committee, then the full City Council.<\/p>\n

\u2014 A NEW ERA: For the first time since 1963, Council District 9 in South Los Angeles will soon have a non-Black representative<\/a> in the City Council. Estuardo Mazariegos and Jose Ugarte, who are facing each other in the Nov. 3 election to represent parts of downtown and South Los Angeles, are both immigrants from Latin America who arrived undocumented as children.<\/p>\n

\u2014 OFF THE RAILS: Homelessness on Metro\u2019s rail and bus system has dropped by 57% since 2024<\/a>, the agency said this week.<\/p>\n

\u2014 A ROSE AND A THORN: The Rose Bowl Aquatics Center will close April 1, and not be returned to its regular users until the fall of 2028, after the conclusion of the Olympic Games. The announcement came after The Times reported on the impending shutdown.<\/p>\n

QUICK HITSWhere is Inside Safe? The mayor\u2019s signature program went to the intersection of Alameda Street and E. 223rd Street in City Councilmember Tim McOsker\u2019s district where it brought 22 people indoors.
On the docket next week: The City Council will vote on whether to execute the Enhanced City Resources Master Agreement for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.Stay in touch<\/p>\n

That\u2019s it for this week! Send your questions, comments and gossip to LAontheRecord@latimes.com<\/a>. Did a friend forward you this email? Sign up here<\/a> to get it in your inbox every Saturday morning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"During the Los Angeles mayoral primary, Spencer Pratt put out a video saying he was living in a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63179,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4],"tags":[33078,5727,13927,33077,8991,6369,1949,8,33079,5868,306,9,32417,3072,7,1071,2092,1349],"class_list":["post-63178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-top-stories","tag-barger","tag-city","tag-council","tag-county-government","tag-district","tag-fire","tag-friday","tag-headlines","tag-horvath","tag-l-a","tag-los-angeles-times","tag-news","tag-pacific-palisades","tag-region","tag-top-stories","tag-trump","tag-week","tag-year"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@news\/117066022680823095","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63178\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}