Days before Los Angeles’ June 2 mayoral primary, Google co-founder Sergey Brin maxed out a $1,800 donation to Spencer Pratt’s campaign as other major donors and celebrities piled in. With polling showing Pratt in serious contention against Mayor Karen Bass and
On Monday, the day the Los Angeles mayoral primary arrived with early voting already underway, one billionaire’s name was attached to Spencer Pratt’s campaign—along with a level of spending that would be easy to dismiss in another race.
Google co-founder Sergey Brin donated $1,800 to Pratt’s campaign on Wednesday, according to records reviewed by Newsweek. The gift is the maximum Brin can legally give in the Los Angeles mayoral race. Brin’s donation came just days before the June 2 primary election.
While $1. 800 is a small figure for someone whose net worth was listed as $282 billion and who is described as the world’s fourth richest man as of Monday. the timing is the point. Brin’s money is tied to a wider shift in how people in Los Angeles appear to be viewing Pratt—less as a reality TV punchline and more as a contender running on cost-of-living pressure. quality-of-life concerns. and frustration with the city’s political class.
Pratt is a registered Republican running as an independent. If polling holds and he advances, he could reach a runoff election in November. If he wins, he would become the first Republican mayor of Los Angeles in 25 years.
Brin’s wealth comes from shares in Google, which he co-founded with Larry Page. Brin served as president of Alphabet, the parent company of Google, until 2019. Newsweek reached out to Brin for comment via email.
Brin’s maximum contribution is also part of a pattern: other very wealthy figures have already been donating to Pratt.
Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss each donated $1,800 to Pratt in May, about a week before Brin did. The Winklevoss twins are known for a legal battle that alleged Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea for Facebook, and Forbes has each valued at about $2.6 billion.
Other donations coming into the campaign also reflect how Pratt has expanded his reach beyond celebrity support and into major political cash. Starz CEO Jeffrey Hirsch and Sir Lucien Grainge. CEO of Universal Music Group. both gave the maximum amount allowed to Pratt’s campaign. as did Kevin Weaver. president of Atlantic Music Group.
Rodger Berman also gave Pratt the maximum amount allowed in May. Reality TV viewers may recognize Berman from The Rachel Zoe Project, a reality television show that followed him and his then-wife, Rachel Zoe, as they ran her company as a celebrity stylist. The two divorced in 2025.
Several celebrity figures have supported Pratt as well. Gossip blogger Perez Hilton is the godfather of Pratt’s son with wife Heidi Pratt, Gunnar. Hilton told Newsweek he’s campaigning online for Pratt. but he hasn’t given any money to the campaign because. as Hilton put it. “he doesn’t need my money.” Hilton can’t vote in the election because he doesn’t live in Los Angeles.
The Real World star Johnny Devenanzio—known as Johnny Bananas—posted on Instagram that he cast his ballot for Pratt on Monday during early voting. Devenanzio hasn’t donated to Pratt’s campaign, according to official records.
Singer and actor Katharine McPhee has donated $1,024 to Pratt and hosted a fundraiser at her home with her husband, composer David Foster. Foster maxed out his donations to Pratt, giving him $1,800, according to records reviewed by Newsweek.
McPhee has said she’s supporting Pratt in part because of the “overall decline in quality of life” for people living in Los Angeles. She criticized politicians for not prioritizing public safety and for allowing open drug use. “We’ve had many of the same career politicians leading the city for a long time. and I think people are hungry for fresh perspectives and accountability. That’s what resonated with me about Spencer’s campaign,” McPhee said. Foster was once stepfather to Brody Jenner—one of Pratt’s best friends growing up—and McPhee previously told Newsweek that Foster grew irritated with Pratt’s antics on the reality TV show Princes of Malibu.
Other celebrities who have donated to Pratt’s campaign include Ginger Gaetz. the wife of former Representative Matt Gaetz; actor Wendy Moniz; comedian and filmmaker Mike Binder; political commentator Meghan McCain; Doug Reinhardt. who appeared on The Hills with Pratt; producer Jeff Jenkins; and former Real Housewives of Miami star Joanna Krupa.
Not every donor is a billionaire. Justin Mateen, who created Tinder and is sitting on hundreds of millions of dollars, has donated as well. Mateen maxed out his donation at $1,800. Daniel Broukhim. the cofounder of FabFitFun—which was valued at just under $1 billion in January 2019—also maxed out his donation at $1. 800.
Former Access Hollywood anchor Billy Bush gave Pratt $1,800 on May 21. Bush told Newsweek that this was the first year he made a political donation. giving to Pratt and also his brother. Jonathan Bush. for his campaign to become Maine’s governor. In April. Bush co-hosted a lunch with his girlfriend to help fundraise for Pratt. and he described Los Angeles as a “mess.”.
“[I] will be supporting Spencer here in Los Angeles as we desperately try and save this once beautiful west coast paradise. It’s less about partisan politics and more about accountability and change,” Bush said.
Whether the money is matching voter movement is what will decide the next step in the race.
Recent polling depicts the Los Angeles mayoral contest as unusually tight. A recent Los Angeles Times poll showed Pratt in third. with Mayor Karen Bass at 26 percent and progressive City Councilmember Nithya Raman at 25 percent. Another poll from McLaughlin and Associates. conducted in the days leading up to the election. showed Pratt winning by one point.
Other polls have consistently shown Pratt in second behind Bass, with a tight three-way contest among Pratt, Bass, and Raman. A poll released in mid-May from Emerson College showed Bass at 30 percent and Pratt at 22 percent. A previous poll from March showed Pratt trailing Bass by 10 points.
Prediction markets have also reflected a race with a clear favorite but a real chance of disruption. Kalshi gives Bass a 62 percent chance of winning compared to Pratt’s 27 percent. Polymarket gives Bass similar odds at 64 percent and puts Pratt at 22 percent. Those numbers are about the same gap since Pratt announced his candidacy in January.
California primaries are nonpartisan, but they require a candidate to get over 50 percent of the vote. If no one breaks that threshold, the primary goes to a runoff in the first week of November. If Pratt wins—either in the June 2 election or in November—he would be the first Republican mayor Los Angeles has had in 25 years.
For Pratt, the donations arriving from major names and big fortunes before June 2 add up to more than publicity. They land in a moment when the race is being measured in points, and when whether voters see him as a joke or a serious contender could determine everything that comes next.
Spencer Pratt Sergey Brin Los Angeles mayoral primary Karen Bass Nithya Raman June 2 election runoff November Alphabet Google co-founder political donations celebrity donors Kalshi Polymarket
Sergey Brin donating to that guy feels weird.
Only $1,800?? That’s like… nothing for a billionaire. But yeah the timing is sus, like they’re trying to influence it right before people vote. Still, I wanna know who actually spends the real money.
Isn’t Spencer Pratt the one from that reality show? I swear people keep acting like he’s some serious candidate now. If Brin is backing him for real then that’s kinda wild, like what does LA even want at this point? Also $1,800 max sounds like a loophole thing or something.
This is why I don’t trust elections. It’s not the amount, it’s that billionaires can just slap their name on a campaign right before a primary. Next thing you know it’s all rigged by tech money and PR teams and whatever. Meanwhile Karen Bass probably doesn’t even know what Spencer Pratt eats for breakfast.