This story was originally published by Verite News; For more Oct. 11 election results, click here
City Councilmember Helena Moreno is heading back to City Hall after a resounding win in the Oct. 11 primary election, securing 55% of the vote, above the simple majority she needed to clinch the job without a runoff election.
Her victory in the primary will give Moreno a strong mandate when she enters office in January.
On Saturday during her election night party at the Civic Theater, Moreno said the early victory will give her time to assemble a good team and prepare to lead a city at a crossroads.
“The work starts tomorrow morning,” Moreno told Verite News, noting that she would pay particular attention to preparing a city budget that can help her achieve her vision.
Moreno will succeed Mayor LaToya Cantrell, who, in her second term, has been in frequent combat with the City Council that Moreno, at times, helped lead as one of two citywide representatives on the seven-member body. The council has made multiple efforts to limit Cantrell’s power, often challenging her decision-making on everything from mayoral appointees to entering into a settlement with the School Board.
However, despite their frequent differences, when asked whether she would keep any part of Cantrell’s administration in place, Moreno said yes: Cantrell’s popular health director, Dr. Jennifer Avegno, who led the city through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’ll be keeping Dr. Avegno, who I think does an amazing job with the Health Department,” Moreno said.
She did not provide any hint as to whether any other familiar faces would be part of her administration, even when asked whether popular councilmember Joe Giarruso would be joining her team – though she did compliment him effusively.
Moreno has held a comfortable lead in both polling and campaign contributions over the course of the election season. The councilmember at-large kicked off her mayoral campaign last year, with campaign signs appearing as early as last summer, more than a year out from the election. It was a bracingly early start – and an explicit claim to the leading position she would maintain throughout the election.
Fellow councilmember Oliver Thomas also threw his hat into the ring early on in the election, announcing his campaign this spring. Thomas, who was once considered a mayoral frontrunner almost two decades ago, before a federal bribery conviction derailed his political career, had recently returned to politics representing District E on the council beginning in 2022.
As a councilmember, Thomas has been a frequent advocate for the Cantrell administration, regularly voting against overriding mayoral vetoes, whether they concerned council approval of mayoral appointees, sanitation contracts in the French Quarter or even her ability to use the city-owned Upper Pontalba Apartment. As a candidate, Thomas has promised to leverage his decades of experience to address blight and improve city services.
As the year proceeded, other candidates also entered the fray. Some were more serious contenders, like former judge Arthur Hunter. Others were less so, like disgraced former Orleans Parish Communication District executive Tyrell Morris. But all failed to meaningfully gain momentum and eat into the early lead held by Moreno.
Going into qualifying in July, many voters expected a two-man race between Moreno and Thomas, rehashing the frequent disputes the two had on the council. But then State Sen. Royce Duplessis, who had earlier announced that he would not run for mayor, changed his mind and entered the race, hoping to offer a meaningful challenge to his fellow progressive Moreno.
Duplessis, also a former statehouse representative, made a name for himself in Baton Rouge through his work reforming criminal justice, health care, worker protections and early childhood education. At the launch of his campaign, he marketed himself as the candidate who could be a real challenger to Moreno, but he entered with little cash on hand. Still, Duplessis saw an opening and hoped he could force Moreno into a runoff.
Less than a month later, Hunter, who continued to trail in the polls, would drop out and endorse Duplessis, cementing the three-way contest that has defined the election over the last two months.
Since then, there has been a marathon of forums and televised debates and questionnaires. In some ways, the candidates’ platforms look similar: All have highlighted their desire to improve city services, increase affordable housing and support the creation of new jobs. In pitching voters, they’ve each played to their strengths. Moreno has pitched herself as someone deeply attuned to the systems of City Hall, capable of implementing her progressive policies without drama or delay. Thomas as someone with deep experience in politics going back to the ‘90s, who can speak plainly and compassionately to the experiences of longtime New Orleanians, especially those impacted by the justice system. And Duplessis as an outsider uninvolved in the current battles between the City Council and the Mayor, willing to leverage his statehouse relationships to achieve his goals for the city.
Moreno first became a public figure in New Orleans through her work as an on-air journalist with WDSU-TV. She later became a state house representative, where she was known for her work championing survivors of domestic and sexual violence in a series of bills. In 2018, she joined the New Orleans City Council as an at-large member, where she became known as one of the more progressive councilmembers as she passed a ream of ordinances, most notably, helping relocate the residents of Gordon Plaza, increasing wages for city workers and promoting renewable energy.
She will become New Orleans’ second woman mayor in its history, and its first Hispanic mayor.