Spencer Pratt, the reality television personality running for mayor of Los Angeles, told podcast host Bill Maher on Monday that he would crack down on smoking and drug use around children in public spaces — and that Mr. Maher himself would not be exempt.
“I don’t want you smoking in front of kids at the park,” Mr. Pratt said on Mr. Maher’s “Club Random” podcast. “You know, I’ll be enforcing if you’re smoking that in front of a kid at a swing. I’ll be getting you as mayor.”
Mr. Pratt, best known for his role on the MTV series “The Hills,” entered the race after his Pacific Palisades home was destroyed in the January 2025 wildfires. He has since positioned himself as a public safety-focused challenger to incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, framing the campaign as a response to what he calls a breakdown in basic city governance.
The interview aired the day before Tuesday’s nonpartisan primary, in which voters chose from among 14 candidates, including Ms. Bass, Mr. Pratt and City Councilwoman Nithya Raman. Under Los Angeles’ jungle primary system, the top two finishers advance to a November runoff unless a candidate captures an outright majority.
Mr. Pratt told Mr. Maher his priorities began with the basics.
“I care about safety, the lights being on, potholes,” he said, before broadening his argument to drug use near children. “No more drugs around kids at parks, in schools, in front of daycares. We need to have a society of consequences again.”
He dismissed suggestions that he needed to master more complex policy areas before taking office, saying he would delegate while focusing on street-level conditions first.
“Solar panels. We’re about three years from worrying about solar panels,” Mr. Pratt said. “We need to get all the naked drug addicts off of the sidewalks, and then I can worry about solar panels.”
Mr. Maher, himself a well-known marijuana advocate, pushed back on Mr. Pratt’s readiness for office.
“No, Spencer, I got bad news,” Mr. Maher said. “If you’re the mayor, you are going to have to learn some of these issues more.”
He nonetheless acknowledged Mr. Pratt’s appeal, telling him at one point: “You had me at hello.”
Mr. Maher also offered a broader critique of California governance that aligned with Mr. Pratt’s message.
“This is a state that is constantly overthinking everything and overregulating everything,” Mr. Maher said, while warning the candidate that entrenched special interests would pose a formidable obstacle.
California’s Department of Cannabis Control prohibits cannabis use in public places and bans smoking within 1,000 feet of a school, daycare center or youth center when children are present, according to state regulations.
A recent UC Berkeley-Los Angeles Times poll conducted days before the primary showed Ms. Bass at 26%, Ms. Raman at 25% and Mr. Pratt at 22% — a tight three-way contest that raised the likelihood of a November runoff. Mr. Pratt’s campaign website describes his bid not as a campaign but as “a mission,” listing crisis leadership and government reform among his top priorities.
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