Raman Seeks Donations by Calling Pratt “Reckless MAGA”

How did Los Angeles’ mayoral race get here?

And by here that would be a wide-open challenger landscape that includes a former supporter of Bass now running against her, and a former reality TV star who was most recently selling crystals showing some promise in the polls. Little wonder that the race is generally seen as wide open, with no clear frontrunner.

Maybe it’s the overarching theme of weak leadership in the eyes of some. In fact, Mott Smith, a developer and chair of the Council of Infill Builders called out what he said is the “old saw” of the city having a weak mayor and strong city council.

“We don’t have a weak mayor system; we have a weak mayor culture,” he said. “And talented leaders like [former mayors] Tom Bradley, Dick Riordan and Antonio Villaraigosa accomplished things that totally defied conventional expectations.”

He pointed to the Metro rail system that broke ground under Bradley and Villaraigosa’s work to reform Los Angeles Unified School District as examples.

If you listen to the field of candidates, they sound the same on certain issues, whether it’s more housing, cleaning up the streets or Measure United to House L.A. exemptions. Perhaps the key to winning is more about who pulls ahead as the best perceived leader for the city.

Raman zeroes in on Pratt

Mayoral hopeful Nithya Raman tried something new on Friday: dialing up the fear factor.

The Fourth District Council Member called Spencer Pratt “a reckless MAGA Republican former reality TV star with no governing experience running against me.”

It’s giving life to a candidate some thought was a joke when he announced his candidacy in January.

“… Spencer Pratt is rising in the polls and he is raising the most money of any candidate in this race,” Raman’s campaign told supporters. “And he could very well become our next mayor. We know how this movie ends. We are watching it play out on the national stage and it’s excruciating.”

Last week, mayoral candidates were required to submit what their campaigns have raised for the Jan. 1 through April 18 reporting period. It’s true Pratt raised the most of any candidate during this timeframe at $538,478. It was a near dead heat with Raman, who raked in $530,915.

Both candidates can lay claim to besting incumbent Mayor Karen Bass, who reported under $500,000 raised in the January-April period.

Maybe it was Pratt’s fundraising moves in the days since that last reporting deadline that triggered the Raman camp’s latest marketing move.

After April 18, Pratt’s campaign pulled in roughly $140,000. That’s more than any of the other five frontrunners — Bass, Raman, Adam Miller and Rae Chen Huang. From real estate recent donors included retail real estate honcho Jay Luchs of Newmark. There was also Jeanie Buss, Los Angeles Lakers governor and minority owner.

Stay tuned for a closer look at Pratt in The Real Deal’s May issue of the magazine, which is due out Monday online.

Resi brokerage movement

Speaking of leadership, on the brokerage front, Steve Katz turned up this week at Rodeo Realty as its Encino office manager.

That’s a bit of a switch after Katz quietly left Beverly Hills brokerage Hilton & Hyland in January as its managing director.

If you look at our Movers column in recent months, it’s a lot of the same names being opportunistic on the recruiting front.

Rodeo Realty is one that’s been turning up frequently when it comes to new agent announcements. Coldwell Banker Real Estate, the franchising arm of the legacy brokerage, also continues to amass agents and offices. Coldwell’s latest move under its Coldwell Banker Envision franchisee added a team of 20 to launch its sports and entertainment division.

In some ways the brokerage movement of this year is recognition that there can only be so many specialty shops in the marketplace because there are only so many high-end homes to generate revenue from as a business. That often leads to strategies built on sheer volume, whether it’s expanding offices or continuously adding agents to pump up sales — especially in a market where head-turning deals have cooled.