Columnist Warns Spencer Pratt 30,000 Sidewalk Repairs Show L.A. Mayor Job’s Limits
Updated
Updated · Los Angeles Times · May 23
Columnist Warns Spencer Pratt 30,000 Sidewalk Repairs Show L.A. Mayor Job’s Limits
5 articles · Updated · Los Angeles Times · May 23
Los Angeles columnist Steve Lopez urged Spencer Pratt to reconsider his mayoral bid, arguing the job is far harder than his social-media attacks on Karen Bass suggest.
More than 30,000 broken-sidewalk repairs are backlogged with no money available, Lopez wrote, saying Pratt’s pledge to add several thousand police officers would bankrupt the city for years.
Lopez said Los Angeles mayors share power with the City Council and face constraints from county control over mental health and addiction, uncertain federal funding and broader housing-driven inequality.
Karen Bass remains vulnerable after criticism of her wildfire response and rebuilding stumbles, but Lopez argued Pratt has offered little substance and lacks any meaningful government or civic record.
The piece casts Pratt’s outsider campaign as a symptom of voter frustration with City Hall while warning that simple promises collide with the city’s entrenched fiscal and political limits.
When a celebrity challenger financially outpaces an incumbent, what does it reveal about voter frustration with traditional politics?
Can a reality TV star's simple promises fix complex urban crises that have stumped experienced politicians for decades?