2006 New Orleans Mayoral Election

[dimebag1980]

I personally believe that the only reason Nagin came out so high is because one particular side (the majority side) of the New Orleans population was pushing really hard to get the chance to vote in this election. Regardless of his mistakes, that particular side of the population still wants him in office for one reason only. But don't ask the local NAACP, because they'll strongly deny it.

[NCB]

I personally believe that the only reason Nagin came out so high is because one particular side (the majority side) of the New Orleans population was pushing really hard to get the chance to vote in this election. Regardless of his mistakes, that particular side of the population still wants him in office for one reason only. But don't ask the local NAACP, because they'll strongly deny it.

Well it doesn't even matter now that Landrieu is in the runoff. Nagin has only a slight shot at winning it. Landrieu will pick up nearly all of Couhig's and Forman's votes, and he should be able to pull far ahead of Nagin in the runoff.

[dimebag1980]

Well it doesn't even matter now that Landrieu is in the runoff. Nagin has only a slight shot at winning it. Landrieu will pick up nearly all of Couhig's and Forman's votes, and he should be able to pull far ahead of Nagin in the runoff.

I'm not too fond of the Landrieu family, but I personally prefer Mitch over Mary (although Mary is really irrelevant to this topic.) I know I don't live in New Orleans, but as far as mayor goes, I'd much rather see Landrieu get it than Nagin. You live down there so you're likely feeling the pulse of the political world down there, and if you say Nagin doesn't have much of a chance against Landrieu, I feel good about that. I feel much better about the future of New Orleans.

[NCB]

You live down there so you're likely feeling the pulse of the political world down there, and if you say Nagin doesn't have much of a chance against Landrieu, I feel good about that. I feel much better about the future of New Orleans.

I'm very confident in saying that Landrieu will win. I know that anything can happen in politics, but Nagin will simply not be able to win once Landrieu picks up Couhig's and Forman's votes, which he will.

[sonofaque86]

Well maybe more of the majority of New Orleans (blacks) will vote to keep Nagin mayor in a month if they really want him instead of that other guy to represent the city.

[UrbanSoutherner]

I do not live in New Orleans, but from what I have heard, it sounds like Landrieu is probably the only candidate that has any hope of bridging the racial divide in New Orleans. Due to his father's progressive legacy on race relations (clearly ahead of his time) and the family's strong political ties to the African-American community, I think Landrieu could pull the city together. Nagin could have possibly done so prior to Katrina, but his reckless behavior during and following the hurricane permanently ruined his ability to do so. I think Landrieu is probably the best choice. And I agree that he is likely to win since he may be able to appeal across racial lines (something Nagin cannot do much of now). It is ironic since Nagin was the candidate that carried most of the white vote in the last election against Richard Pennington (now my police chief here in Atlanta).

[TSmith]

Yeah I don't see any way that Landrieu doesn't win it all. Stranger things have happened, but I'd be happy with Mitch as my mayor.

[breaux]

I would say three to one Mitch will win. He has enough support from the black community, and Nagin has very little from the white community.

The only way Mitch loses is if the Forman/Couhig vote stays home.

I don't think Landrieu is wildly popular with those voters and just the dislike of Nagin might not be enough to get them to the polls.

My guess is that both of these guys have been planning on the runoff all along, and we'll see things really heat up.

I'd vote for Mitch if I was a New Orleanian, but I will say that I don't think Nagin has done a bad job. His big mouth just lost him too much credibility.

[TSmith]

I'd vote for Mitch if I was a New Orleanian, but I will say that I don't think Nagin has done a bad job. His big mouth just lost him too much credibility.

Exactly. I was a huge Nagin fan before the storm. Things were finally turning around, with new projects being announced left and right. N.O., Inc. was about to reach their goal of 15,000 jobs way ahead of schedule. And some of you may remember, we lead the nation in per capita income growth. Things were going well, and Nagin was running a clean government.

That said, he said some things he shouldn't have after the storm. And this recovery, or lack thereof, is too important to give the reins to a man who doesn't seem to think before he speaks. It isn't about race, and it isn't about politics with me... it's about New Orleans, and who has the ability to guide this recovery.

[SlidellWX]

The runoff is what I expected it to be. Landrieu will get most of the Forman and some of the Couhig votes as most of those people simply do not want Nagin back in office. I think some of the Couhig votes will also just sit the runoff out...due to partisan politics.

I am also not surprised that the voters were about a 50/50 split demographically. I went down to the FQF today (awesome crowd)...and decided to drive around town beforehand to see how much progress has taken place. NOE is still largely empty...with a few trailers here and there. Gentilly and Lakeview have some people back...maybe 15-20% from what I could see going down Filmore and Canal...but I think that will change soon...now that people know the FEMA elevations. Mid-City is really coming back strong...I'd say a good 40% of the people are back from what I could see. Lots of traffic and a good # doing work on homes or out enjoying a sunny day. After turning on to Carrollton the Gert Town area is pretty empty...but then I see a ton of activity past Claiborne going into Hollygrove and Broadmoore. I'd say a good 80-90% of the people are back in this area just based on traffic and the number of people I saw on the street. I then drove down St. Charles which outside of the Streetcars is completely back to it's normal self and turned into Central City to hook up with Claiborne again into the CBD. Central City has a large # of people back...maybe 50-60% from the amount of traffic and pedestrians I saw. I parked in the Marigny which is 100% back...and enjoyed the FQF until around 630 PM. On the way home to Slidell I took Elysian Fields up to 610 and saw a good # of people back south of 10...maybe around 70% in the Treme. I did not make into the 9th ward...but since it flooded severely...I would guess very few people are back. After driving through these areas...I'm not surprised at the numbers. I'd say the immediate city voting profile is about 60-40 white black...with the 20,000 displaced voters balancing everything out. I'd also say that the amount of vehicular and foot traffic in the city reminds of my hometown city of St. Louis alot. I think St. Louis has around 340,000 people right now. I don't think we are that high yet...but definitely in the 275,000-300,000 range. I also noticed a much larger Hispanic population...but I don't think they voted on Saturday. I would not be surprised if we had 30,000-40,000 Hispanics in the city right now from the numbers I saw. In 4 years...that could really prove for an interesting election.

I'm not concerned with who wins the elections because in the long run...any leader will sense that people do want change in the region. At least that's the feeling I get. Things are already changing before our eyes (i.e. the schools) and that can only be good.

[richyb83]

Nagin at Disdavantage in Run-off for Mayor

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/2680801.html

[monsoon]

I find it disturbing but not unexpected that most of Nagin's support seems to come from people who are voting for him simply because he is Black. Expect him to play the race card as much as he can to keep his political power.

[NCB]

I find it disturbing but not unexpected that most of Nagin's support seems to come from people who are voting for him simply because he is Black. Expect him to play the race card as much as he can to keep his political power.

That's whats been going on in New Orleans for 30+ years now. Once the city became predominantly black in the mid 60's, most of the black politicians running for any city office since then have been recieving alot of their votes simply because they are black.

[NCB]

Well guys, the runoff between Nagin and Landrieu for mayor of New Orleans is taking place today, and we should know who the next mayor of New Orleans is tonight. I'll post some info and numbers as soon as they start coming in. Nagin has been saying for weeks now that he expects to win it by a pretty big margin...we'll see.

[tombarnes]

Bah...I hope not.

[NCB]

Bah...I hope not.

Believe me Tom, there are hundreds of thousands that feel the same way. I still think we will be calling Landrieu mayor at this time tommorow.

[TSmith]

Gonna be VERY close, but Mitch should win. However, Mitch running around town with the likes of Sidney Bartholemy, Troy Carter, and Eddie Jordan might be his undoing.

[NCB]

Gonna be VERY close, but Mitch should win. However, Mitch running around town with the likes of Sidney Bartholemy, Troy Carter, and Eddie Jordan might be his undoing.

Yea, it's gonna be a very close one. Though it's going to be very interesting to watch it unfold tonight. Also, I don't know what Mitch was thinking with bringing those guys around with him either.

[NCB]

Right now, with 10% of the polls reporting, Mitch Landrieu is leading the race for mayor with 52% of the vote, and Nagin with 48%. Though this could change quite a bit as only 10% of the polls are reporting.

[monsoon]

Cnn was reporting earlier that an exit poller was predicting that Nagin would win. But they admitted that this poll had correctly predicted the first race.

[NCB]

Cnn was reporting earlier that an exit poller was predicting that Nagin would win. But they admitted that this poll had correctly predicted the first race.

I wouldn't be suprised to see Nagin win at all. You can look back at some of the posts after the first race in this thread and see that I gave him basically no chance in winning the runoff, as were many at that time. But many things have changed quite a bit since then. One thing Nagin has going for him is the fact that he's not a career politician like Landrieu, he's a a businessman, and many are tired of family politics in New Orleans.

[NCB]

New Orleans Voters Choose Mayor in Runoff

Article from the NY Times

[NCB]

Man is this race close!

With 52% of the polls reporting:

• Landrieu 50%

• Nagin 50%

Right now, Landrieu is ahead of Nagin by around only 300+ votes. The last stretch is going to be very interesting to watch!

[TSmith]

Not looking good for Mitch. Statistically, it's almost impossible for him to win, even with the current numbers... due to the racial makeup of the outstanding precincts, and that Nagin went from 5% of the white vote in the primary to around 21% right now in the runoff. Fox8 already called it for Nagin. I guess you could call him the comeback kid. I'm dissapointed, but we gotta live with it and support this guy.

[NCB]

Officially now, Nagin is ahead with 51% of the vote, and 85% of the polls reporting.