From left: Mayor Karen Bass, Spencer Pratt and Councilmember Nithya Raman. (Photo illustration by Julia Wick. Base images by Sarah Reingewirtz/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News, MEGA/GC Images and Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
FORGET THE KIDS OF STRANGER THINGS or the special agents of NCIS. If you owned a TV four years ago, a single character almost certainly dominated your screen in late spring 2022: Developer and mayoral candidate Rick Caruso's patrician face was ubiquitous, looming through every commercial break. In the midst of a heated primary, Caruso was dropping at least a half-million dollars a week on broadcast and cable television ads. By the time the June election rolled around, he had spent a cool $23 million on TV ads.
There were also a smattering of TV ads in support of then-Rep. Karen Bass — who would ultimately defeat Caruso in the November general election — but her supporters were spending far less.
As Bass runs for re-election this year, TV ad spending is so minimal that L.A. voters could be forgiven for barely noticing there’s a mayoral race going on, at least until the past week or so.
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