Kimmel's Joke, Pratt's Devastation
Jimmy Kimmel's U-Haul Joke for Spencer Pratt Met with Wildfire Tragedy Response
Key Points
In his monologue, Kimmel framed the mock “help moving” as stemming from Pratt’s fundraising limits, joking that “out-of-state donation money is running out” and that “moving is expensive.”
Kimmel’s bit included specific staging details: the U-Haul was decorated with balloons, party streamers, a “Just Defeated” sign beside a photo of Pratt, and even “aluminum cans tied to strings,” and Kimmel said he would “drop it off in front of the Bel Air hotel.”
Pratt had previously rebuffed other offers of help: when a social media user offered to send him moving boxes, Pratt replied, “No, Karen Bass let my house burn down. Everything I owned burned in my house.”
A follow-on detail about Pratt’s campaign logistics surfaced after the U-Haul joke: Pratt insisted he stayed at the Bel Air hotel for security during the campaign, according to coverage of the exchange.
Spencer Pratt finished third in the Los Angeles mayoral primary — and Jimmy Kimmel wasted no time. On June 9, 2026, Kimmel rolled out a decorated U-Haul truck on his late-night show, mocking Pratt's pledge to leave the city if Mayor Karen Bass or City Councilwoman Nithya Raman won Us Weekly. Pratt had made good on that promise in reverse: Bass took 34.3% of the vote, Raman took 28.6%, and Pratt trailed with 25.8% — about 207,757 votes LA Times.
The next morning, Pratt fired back on X. He posted video of the rubble from his Pacific Palisades home, destroyed in the January 2025 wildfire, and said he has "nothing left to pack" OK Magazine. The exchange lit up social media and put a dark spotlight on the city's still-unfinished recovery from the most destructive fire in Los Angeles history.
Kimmel's U-Haul Gag Targets Pratt's Campaign Promises
Kimmel's June 9 monologue was carefully staged. The U-Haul was decked out with balloons, party streamers, aluminum cans tied to strings, and a "Just Defeated" sign placed next to a photo of Pratt TheWrap. Kimmel offered to "drop it off in front of the Bel Air hotel" — a sharp dig at campaign finance records showing Pratt spent over $14,900 at the luxury Hotel Bel-Air for lodging and meals LA Times.
Kimmel also jabbed at Pratt's fundraising. "Out-of-state donation money is running out," Kimmel said, "and moving is expensive" Us Weekly. He closed by telling Pratt, "We are so, so sorry to see you go." The joke landed because Pratt had spent months on the campaign trail insisting he would leave if his rivals won — a promise he now has to reckon with.
Pratt Shoots Back: 'Karen Bass Let My House Burn Down'
Pratt's response on June 10 was somber. He posted video from the ruins of his Chautauqua Boulevard home, destroyed in the January 7, 2025 Palisades Fire, which burned 23,448 acres and destroyed 6,837 structures Wikipedia. "I have nothing left to pack," he said. When another social media user had earlier offered to send him moving boxes, Pratt replied: "No, Karen Bass let my house burn down. Everything I owned burned in my house" Yahoo News.
Pratt's campaign was built almost entirely on that loss. He filmed campaign ads from a trailer on his empty dirt lot and accused the city of letting fire hydrants run dry during the disaster Fox News. His candidacy began in January 2026, on the one-year anniversary of the fire, and drew a Trump endorsement in May — though analysts at UCLA called that backing a "roadblock" in a city with only 15% Republican registration The Guardian.
A Slow Vote Count Sealed Pratt's Fate
Pratt's loss wasn't obvious on election night. On June 2, initial results had him in second place behind Bass Ballotpedia. But as mail-in ballots were counted over the following week, City Councilwoman Nithya Raman surged past him. By June 8, Raman held 28.6% to Pratt's 25.8% KQED. The Associated Press officially called the runoff for Bass and Raman on the morning of June 9 — just hours before Kimmel taped his monologue.
Some Pratt supporters cried foul, alleging the slow count amounted to "rigging." Election officials and CalMatters pushed back, noting that California law allows ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted for days afterward. The Bass-versus-Raman runoff is set for November 3, 2026. With Pratt's roughly 207,000 votes up for grabs, both candidates must decide how hard to chase his base of fire-angry voters.
Fire Victims' Anger Still Shapes the Race Ahead
The 2025 Palisades Fire killed 12 people and caused an estimated $25 billion in damage Wikipedia. Recovery has been painfully slow: only 17 of 450 rebuilding projects have been certified for occupancy LA Times. Fire survivors have had property taxes deferred until 2030, but many displaced residents remain in limbo. Pratt's lawsuit against the city over fire department negligence will likely keep the disaster in the headlines well past his exit from the race.
Mayor Bass dismissed Pratt's campaign as "reprehensible" and said he needed a "basic civics course" Fox News. Raman called on voters to reject the "broken status quo" LA Times. But with roughly a quarter of primary voters having backed a candidate who lost his home in the fire, both women heading into the November runoff know the city's disaster response is still the defining issue — and not a punchline.
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