In video, The Hills actor, who did not contest the outcome of the election, said his campaign to ‘save’ LA was just starting

Spencer Pratt appeared to concede the Los Angeles mayor’s race on Friday in a new video where he says “the campaign portion of my mission to save Los Angeles is coming to a close”, but declares “war” against the two candidates advancing to the city’s general election.

In the video posted on social media, Pratt notably did not contest the results of the election, despite Donald Trump’s repeated, but unfounded claims the race was “rigged”. Trump, who endorsed Pratt, called California’s elections “crooked”.

Housing and urban development department alleges fraud in administration’s latest clash with California

The Trump administration has suspended federal funding to Los Angeles’s beleaguered homelessness agency.

The announcement is the administration’s latest move rescinding funding to California, where Donald Trump has feuded with the state’s Democratic leaders.

No injuries reported as fire in Tracy destroys medical equipment warehouse and authorities investigate cause

A fire at a 1m sq ft warehouse complex continued to burn out of control in California early on Friday, as authorities warned the blaze could take days to extinguish and may contain toxic hazards.

The raging inferno was pumping thick black smoke up in billowing clouds as flame and a red hot glow were visible beneath from aerial images. The fire has destroyed the medical equipment warehouse in Tracy, in northern California, and prompted evacuations of other nearby facilities, with no injuries reported.

Mother and brother were rescued after wave engulfed trio in Laguna Beach, as mayor calls news ‘heartbreaking’

California officials have recovered the body of a five-year-old girl who earlier this week was swept into the ocean by turbulent waters.

On Tuesday evening, the girl, her mother and brother were walking along the shore of Treasure Island Beach in Orange county, when a wave reportedly engulfed them.

Former xAI engineer Devin Kim alleges he was illegally fired for trying to implement safety mechanisms for the chatbot

A former engineer at Elon Musk’s xAI who now heads a thinktank focused on AI safety filed a lawsuit claiming he was fired from the SpaceX subsidiary for raising concerns about the risks artificial intelligence poses to humanity.

Devin Kim claims in the lawsuit filed in California state court on Tuesday that his efforts to place guardrails on the development of the chatbot Grok made him a target for company leadership.

Employees at artificial intelligence companies are coming into gargantuan sums of money amid boom in IPOs

Home prices in the San Francisco Bay Area’s already expensive market are skyrocketing as employees at leading artificial intelligence companies come into gargantuan sums of money thanks to a boom in initial public offerings.

With San Francisco’s OpenAI and Anthropic, as well as SpaceX, which operates a major facility in the Los Angeles area, eyeing debuts on the stock market, the hot housing market may not abate soon. If their initial public offering (IPO) is well-received, the companies’ multibillion-dollar valuations are poised to produce massive wealth for employees and executives holding shares, which experts say could trigger an uptick in demand for the Bay Area’s limited housing stock.

Defense says no evidence occasional Uber driver Jonathan Rinderknecht ignited deadly blaze on New Year’s Day 2025

The trial of 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht, the man accused of starting last year’s deadly Palisades fire, kicked off on Wednesday with opening arguments. Prosecutors cast him as a vengeful arsonist who sought to hide his role from authorities, while his defense attorneys argued that the fire was caused by fireworks.

On New Year’s Day in 2025, firefighters extinguished a small blaze in the Pacific Palisades, a coastal Los Angeles enclave. But the flames continued to smolder underground, before reigniting as they were picked up by strong winds. The Palisades fire, the most destructive wildfires in city history, tore through roughly 23,000 acres, incinerating thousands of buildings and killing 12 people.

Shasta county passes measure requiring elections to be held in person on one day and limiting absentee ballots

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Northern California’s Shasta county, best known for its radical conservative politics and thriving election-skeptic movement, appears on track for another clash with the state over a newly approved ballot measure that would transform local elections.

In last Tuesday’s election, the majority of voters in the rural county backed Measure B, which requires elections to be held in person on a single day and limits who can cast an absentee ballot – effectively putting an end to vote by mail – while also requiring photo ID and a hand count.

Chemical tank overheated in May and forced evacuation of 50,000 nearby residents due to danger of explosion

The FBI is searching a southern California aerospace facility where an overheated chemical tank forced 50,000 residents to evacuate last month, after federal authorities served a search warrant there on Wednesday.

Signed by a federal judge last week, the warrant approved the seizure of records related to the “storage, use or disposal” of methyl methacrylate, the chemical stored inside the tank that authorities feared could explode.

Hilton has worn many hats since he arrived in the US 14 years ago, and now faces steep odds of defeating Democratic Xavier Becerra in November

After years of working in the background of Conservative party politics in Britain, Steve Hilton has passed the first major test as his own front man: clinching a spot in the November run-off to become California’s next governor.

The outcome was far from a given under California’s open primary system, which rewards the top two vote winners regardless of party, and the particular challenge of running as a Republican in one of the most solidly blue states in the country.

The ex-reality TV star, who lost his home in the Pacific Palisades fire, cast himself as the antidote to the city’s woes

Spencer Pratt, an ex-reality TV star, cast himself as the antidote to Los Angeles’s woes as he campaigned to be the city’s next mayor.

He curried favor with swaths of disillusioned voters who related to his diatribes against city leadership. His fervent social media posts, including re-shares of AI-generated campaign ads showing LA in an apocalyptic light, garnered national attention.

Former UK political operative endorsed by Trump will face off against Democrat Xavier Becerra in November election

Republican Steve Hilton, the former UK political operative turned Fox News personality, has advanced to the November general election in the race to become California’s next governor, facing off against Democrat Xavier Becerra, a former congressman, state attorney general and US health secretary.

Hilton’s success, a remarkable achievement for a recent immigrant, came after he was endorsed by Donald Trump.

Low wages and fears of ICE crackdowns have set workers on edge of strike as thousands set to arrive during World Cup

Hospitality and food service workers in several US cities hosting World Cup games are warning of looming labor disputes and possible strikes as the largest single sport tournament in the world gets ready to kick off on 11 June.

In Los Angeles, California, cashiers, dishwashers, cooks, bartenders, concessions workers and food attendants at the SoFi stadium reached a tentative agreement on Tuesday afternoon, but the union noted it had a contractual right to walk off the job if it determines that federal immigration enforcement is threatening worker safety during the World Cup. The US’s opening match, against Paraguay, is scheduled to take place at SoFi Stadium – rebranded as the Los Angeles Stadium for the tournament – on 12 June.

Progressive challenger to face incumbent mayor in November as former reality star Pratt trails behind

Nithya Raman, a progressive Los Angeles city council member, has advanced to the November runoff for LA mayor, edging out former reality TV villain Spencer Pratt for the chance to face incumbent mayor Karen Bass.

Pratt, who decided to run for mayor after his Pacific Palisades home burned down in the 2025 wildfires, held a lead over Raman for days. But as ballot processing from last week’s election continued, the city councillor pulled ahead.

Raman shook up LA mayoral race by entering hours before the deadline – now she faces her one-time political ally

• Raman advances to face Karen Bass in LA mayoral runoff

On election night, Nithya Raman seemed as if she was prepared to lose the second spot in the Los Angeles mayoral race to the reality TV star Spencer Pratt, whose viral campaign appeared on track to upend the contest.

“Many thousands of votes will be counted in the days ahead, and we may not get an answer we like. But regardless of what happens next, nobody can take away what all of us have built together,” Raman, a progressive Democrat who sits on the LA city council, told her supporters.

Progressive and former reality TV star have been battling for the number two spot to face off against Karen Bass

Nithya Raman, the progressive Los Angeles city councillor, appeared to be edging out Spencer Pratt in the LA mayoral race challenging Karen Bass as Donald Trump continues to repeat falsehoods that California elections are “rigged”.

The pair have been battling for the number two spot to face off against the incumbent, who already secured enough votes to advance to a runoff in November. Pratt, a former reality TV star, held a lead over Raman for days, but as ballot processing from last week’s election continued, the city councillor has pulled ahead.

Jonathan Rinderknecht is accused of starting the blaze that became Los Angeles’s deadliest and destructive wildfire

The trial of a 29-year-old charged with sparking a wildfire that went on to become the deadly Palisades inferno, the most destructive blaze in Los Angeles history, is set to begin on Monday in a case that has gripped the city as Angelenos seek answers more than a year after the deadly fire.

Jonathan Rinderknecht, an occasional Uber driver, is accused of starting a small blaze on New Year’s Day 2025, later dubbed the Lachman fire. Although the Los Angeles fire department extinguished the fire on 2 January, it reignited five days later due to high winds and tinderbox conditions after burning undetected deep in the dry hillsides.

The moderate Republican, an advocate of abortion rights, resigned in 1995 amid accusations of sexual harassment

Former US senator Bob Packwood, a moderate Oregon Republican whose reputation as a champion of abortion and women’s rights was spoiled at the end of his career by allegations of sexual harassment, has died. He was 93.

Packwood’s death on Saturday was announced in an obituary sent to media outlets by his family.