NOLA Mayoral Election

[TexasProgressive]

Stayed up late watching returns at www.nola.com and was not too surprised at the results. So it's a runoff between Nagin and Landrieu, May 20th. It should be an interesting one to watch. Curious to know what folks think.

In fact, I'm REAL curious. This is a huge deal. The international media was all over NO yesterday. I didn't expect much from the US media, to be sure. What I did expect, however, was to find something about it at the left-wing blogs this morning. DU, Daily Kos, AmericaBlog, Atrios, Huffington Post, Buzzflash - I've seen little there. Granted I didn't look close, but I didn't think I'd have to.

Am I missing something?

If you care, www.nola.com has good stuff about it. That's the Times-Picayune website.

[napi21]

1. I have a question about the runoff election.

From what I saw on TV, there were a LOT of people who traveled back to NO just to vote. I assume they are returning to where they are currently living until some idiots can make necessary decisions of how and where they can movee back to. Are they now going to have to make that same trip AGAIN? There are many NO residents still living here in Atlanta, and it's not exactly a short jaunt down the road to drive back to NO, especially at $3.00/gal. gas!

[TexasProgressive]

2. Absentee, Chartered Buses Helped

I'm no expert yet, I'm just now reading all the stories at www.nola.com. Bless their hearts, you don't need a membership. Check it out.

According to the article I just read, the situation was helped by chartered buses and a large absentee vote. I know there was a lot of debate, both pro and con, leading up to this thing. Plenty of concern about all the displaced voters.

If you look at the results, the GOP didn't do well at all. The three top vote-getters were all Democrats. Nagin with 38%, Landrieu with something like 29%, and Rob Forman, whose numbers I don't recall. Forman is the head of the local Audobon Society. You no doubt know the other two.

Anyway, I guess the buses and the absentee vote must of helped a bit.

There's a moving story online about all of the reunions that were taking place at voting sites and back in the home neighborhoods.

[skipos]

3. I would like to see Landrieu win

but I don't live there.

[TexasProgressive]

4. I like Nagin and Landrieu both.

Doesn't matter that you don't live there. At least you care. Dems should be following this thing.

I'm getting a creepy feeling this morning, as I check out all of my favorite left-wing bloggers. NOBODY is talking about New Orleans. This is not a local interest story.

[napi21]

5. Well, I don't live there either, but I like Landrieu (sp)

I watched the debate on MSNBC, on election day. Landrieu seemed to be the most competant and sincere. Nagan did very well too, but he seemed more like the STD politician, at least to me. I'm just glad the PUBS failed BIG TIME!

I sure don't remember the individual names, but that idiot lady who was on the right side of my TV screen was a real AH, and the lady on the left wasn't much better!

[TexasProgressive]

7. I remember her

And yes, she was pretty intolerable. She was the one that kept talking about the welfare queens. Good God, I think she was actually saying ghetto queens, wasn't she? Well, she got 1% of the vote, so to hell with her.

The best GOP showing was Rob Couhig with 10% of the vote.

NO is still our town. Always will be, I reckon.

[blondeatlast]

12. "...not a local interest story." Agreed.

I was heartened to see one of the NOLA debates broadcast the other day, but now it seems to have slipped entirely off the radar.

This race involves the role of local vs. stat/national government and HOMELAND SECURITY (Helloooooo, people???).

Let's put it this way--I'm far more afraid of broken levees ANYWHERE than I am of ObL--and I live in the desert!

BTW, welcome to DU. I'm working to turn my state that lovely color as well!

[acmejack]

6. I like Landrieu as well, but I don't live there either.

I guess the low profile is because it was just a runoff to set the election slate. I bet if someone had gotten the required 50%, it would have been news!

[TexasProgressive]

8. This is post-Katrina New Orleans!

So it IS news.

I'm feeling better now. Seeing good stories at the major mainstream news sites.

I guess you're right. Perhaps the bloggers are waiting for the runoff.

I'll quit complaining about it.

[Hippo_Tron]

9. I voted for Landrieu

And I wasn't all that surprised with the results. The problem is that this is going to turn into a question of whether we have a black mayor or a white mayor. Racial politics are alive and well in this city and that's exactly what we don't need right now.

The other problem is that the outcome of this race will largely depend on the Republicans. Forman will probably endorse Landrieu and he got a good share of the Republican votes and many Democrats as well. Couhig also got 10% of the vote and that mostly came from Republicans. The Republican party in this state hates the Landrieu family and they might be inclined to quietly back Nagin for that reason. Of course, they probably weren't all that happy with the chocolate city speech either.

I think that both camps are making their attack ads as we speak and are ready to go negative the second that they think that it will help them.

Also, I was kinda pissed off about the races for lower offices. Gusman has had the ACLU and human rights advocates on his ass for the horrible evacuation of Orleans Parish Prison yet he was still re-elected with 60% over DeSalvo. The IQ Ticket for Assessor pretty much failed, although it seems like there's a strong consensus to have one Assessor. The only bright spot was that my Republican City Councilmember, Jay Batt, was forced into a runoff by Democrat Shelly Midura. Midura is a bit of a long shot but at least we'll get a race with good old fashioned partisan politics involved.

Anyways, that's my take on it. If you have any questions for a local, feel free to ask.

[TexasProgressive]

10. Good to hear from a local

Interesting. You're certainly more aware than I am, but I was wondering it the Republicans might wind up just staying out of it - I was under the impression that they despised Nagin and Landreiu equally.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the two remaining candidates.

[Hippo_Tron]

13. Some Republicans will stay home

But my guess is that they will pick one or the other. I think that a large segment of the rank and file will probably end up voting for Landrieu because of the chocolate city speech but the GOP party machinery would probably rather see Nagin win because Landrieu will be the Democrats' most formidable candidate for Governor or US Senator when he is finished as mayor.

As far as the two candidates are concerned, I voted for Landrieu without reservations. Nagin was an okay mayor pre-Katrina but he's lost all credibility with the chocolate city speech. Just like the GOP has the religious right and the wealthy, we seem to have the black democratic party and the white democratic party and when people like Nagin make those sort of statements, it only serves to further divide Democrats.

Also, Landrieu is more articulate, more experienced, and more connected, and will serve our city much better in lobbying with the state and federal governments. Frankly I think he's over-qualified for the job. He's perfectly qualified to be Governor and personally I'd rather see him run for that office than mayor.

[AtomicKitten]

11. I think a fresh face is what's needed.

Nagin carries the baggage including the criticism of any complicity he had in the failures during Katrina.

I believe the two Republican candidates garnerned less than 5%. Good news.

[Hippo_Tron]

14. Republicans got about 11%

Peggy Wilson (R - Batshit Crazy) got 1% and Rob Couhig (R - No Political Skills) got 10%. Ron Forman was a Democrat but had been a Republican for years and only recently switched parties carried a lot of Republican votes as well. Forman was largely an Independent not tied to either party and as I said earlier, he didn't really seem like he wanted to win. He's a guy who likes to be friends with everybody and not really piss anyone off and so politics isn't really his thing.