New Orleans, LA Mayor: This fall’s race to succeed termed-out Democratic Mayor Mitch Landrieu has been slow to develop, but with a little less than two months to go before the July 14 filing deadline, potential candidates still have time to make up their minds. On Monday, Desiree Charbonnet, who recently resigned as a municipal court judge to prepare her campaign, announced that she would run.
Charbonnet, who like almost everyone involved in New Orleans politics is a Democrat, comes from a prominent political family. Charbonnet has also received national attention on the bench for working to steer repeat offenders in drug and prostitution cases, as well as offenders with mental illnesses, towards treatment programs rather than sending them back into the criminal justice system.
While Charbonnet has been elected citywide several times, most of New Orleans’ many judges don’t attract much attention from the public. However, Charbonnet has some connections that could help her get her name out. At her campaign kickoff, Charbonnet earned an endorsement from state Sen. Troy Carter, who initially considered running for mayor himself. Carter is reportedly close to Rep. Cedric Richmond, who represents most of New Orleans in Congress, and his support could be a sign that Richmond and his allies are on board with Charbonnet. (Richmond enthusiastically tweeted when Charbonnet resigned from the court last month ahead of her expected bid.) And as The Advocate’s Stephanie Grace noted, several influential political insiders attended Charbonnet’s kickoff event.
So far, three other candidates are running. City Councilor LaToya Cantrell jumped in a few weeks ago, and she at least looks like an early frontrunner in the developing field. Both Charbonnet and Cantrell are African American Democratic women, and either would be the city’s first female mayor. However, as Grace noted, there are big differences between them. Charbonnet noted her family has “served the city for generations,” which may be a dig at Cantrell, who is originally from Los Angeles. And Cantrell, who first won elected office in 2012 by defeating a city council candidate backed by Richmond and Landrieu, is more of a political outsider than Charbonnet, though she has some well-connected people on her campaign.
The other two declared candidates are ex-Judge Michael Bagneris and rich guy Frank Scurlock. Bagneris, a Democrat, challenged Landrieu in 2014 and lost 64-33, and it’s unclear if he has much support behind his second bid. Scurlock, who as of April was a Republican (he says he’ll change his party registration), may be best known for operating a local bounce house empire and trying to redevelop the site of an abandoned Six Flags amusement park. Scurlock doesn’t seem like an especially serious candidate, though his recent arrest for protesting against the removal of a statue of Jefferson Davis could help him appeal to voters upset with the city’s decision to remove monuments to the Confederacy.
It’s unclear who else will jump in before the July 14 deadline, though Grace notes that Landrieu and his last two predecessors entered the race late. (In fact, Landrieu jumped in days before the deadline.) Two Democratic state legislators, state Sen. J.P. Morrell and state Rep. Walt Leger, have both expressed interest, though they’re both distracted with the legislature in session. Bombastic rich guy Sidney Torres IV, who hosts a reality TV show, also has been considering. However, Torres was already being compared to Donald Trump before people learned his firm had donated $50,000 to Trump’s inauguration, which will not be an asset in this very blue city. It’s also possible more local politicians will express interest before July.
All the candidates will compete on one Oct. 14 ballot, and if no one takes a majority, the top two vote-getters will advance to the Nov. 18 general election regardless of party.