New Orleans, Louisiana
| New Orleans, Louisiana | |
| General information | |
 | |
| Mayor: | LaToya Cantrell |
| Mayor party: | Democratic |
| Last mayoral election: | 2021 |
| Next mayoral election: | 2025 |
| Last city council election: | 2021 |
| Next city council election: | 2025 |
| City council seats: | 7 |
| City website | |
| Composition data | |
| Population: | 378,715 |
| Gender: | Female 51.6% |
| Race: | African American 60.2% White 30.5% Asian 2.9% Two or More Races 1.7% |
| Ethnicity: | Hispanic or Latino 5.2% |
| Median household income: | $36,681 |
| High school graduation rate: | 84.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 33.0% |
| Related New Orleans offices | |
| Louisiana Congressional Delegation Louisiana State Legislature Louisiana state executive offices | |
New Orleans is a city in Orleans Parish, Louisiana. As of 2013, its population was 378,715.[1] New Orleans and the parish of Orleans operate as a merged city-parish government.
City government
- See also: Mayor-council government
The city of New Orleans utilizes a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body while the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.
Mayor
The mayor serves as the city's chief executive and is responsible for proposing a budget, signing legislation into law, appointing departmental directors and overseeing the city's day-to-day operations. The mayor also represents the city on the state, national and international levels. LaToya Cantrell is the current mayor of New Orleans.[2]
City council
The New Orleans City Council is the city's primary legislative body. It is responsible for adopting the city budget, approving mayoral appointees, levying taxes, and making or amending city laws, policies and ordinances.[3]
Membership
The New Orleans City Council is made up of seven members. Five are elected by the city's five districts, while two are elected at large.[3]
A current list of council members can be found here.
Council committees
The New Orleans City Council features eight standing committees that focus on individual policy and legislative issues. Generally, the drafting of city legislation begins with the committees.[4]
A current list of New Orleans City Council committees can be found here.
Boards and commissions
A series of advisory boards and commissions that are made up of non-elected citizens, whom city council members have appointed and approved, advises the New Orleans City Council. The roles of these boards and commissions are to review, debate, and comment upon city policies and legislation and to make recommendations to the city council.[5]
For a full list of New Orleans city boards and commissions, see here.
Mayoral partisanship
New Orleans has a Democratic mayor. As of February 2026, 67 mayors in the largest 100 cities by population are affiliated with the Democratic Party, 22 are affiliated with the Republican Party, one is affiliated with the Libertarian Party, three are independents, five identify as nonpartisan or unaffiliated, and two mayors' affiliations are unknown. Click here for a list of the 100 largest cities' mayors and their partisan affiliations.
Mayoral elections are officially nonpartisan in most of the nation's largest cities. However, many officeholders are affiliated with political parties. Ballotpedia uses one or more of the following sources to identify each officeholder's partisan affiliation: (1) direct communication from the officeholder, (2) current or previous candidacy for partisan office, or (3) identification of partisan affiliation by multiple media outlets.
Elections
2017
The city of New Orleans held primary elections for mayor, seven seats on the city council, and six parish offices on October 14, 2017.[6] A general election took place on November 18, 2017, for races where no candidate received 50 percent of the primary vote. The filing deadline for this election was July 14, 2017.[7]
2014
The city of New Orleans held mayoral and city council elections in 2014. The primary took place on February 1, 2014, and a runoff election was held on March 15, 2014, for city council.
Mayoral incumbent Mitch Landrieu won re-election in the primary, earning more than 50 percent of the vote. Consequently, the mayoral runoff election scheduled for March 15, 2014, was called off.[8][9]
Census information
The table below shows demographic information about the city.
| Demographic data for New Orleans, Louisiana (2015) | ||
|---|---|---|
| New Orleans | Louisiana | |
| Total population: | 376,738 | 4,668,960 |
| Land area (square miles): | 169 | 43,204 |
| Race and ethnicity[10] | ||
| White: | 34.3% | 62.8% |
| Black/African American: | 59.5% | 32.1% |
| Asian: | 3% | 1.7% |
| Native American: | 0.2% | 0.6% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0% | 0% |
| Two or more: | 1.5% | 1.8% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 5.5% | 4.7% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 85.2% | 83.4% |
| College graduation rate: | 35.3% | 22.5% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $36,792 | $45,047 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 27% | 23.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) | ||
Budget
The New Orleans city budget is created using the Budgeting for Outcomes (BFO) process. The first step in this method is estimating the total amount of money available. Then community meetings are held to ask citizens what outcomes they would like to see from the city government. The budget is created with these priorities in mind. The budget is framed around five result categories: public safety, children and families, economic development, sustainable communities, and open and effective government. Departments submit offers for programs with a detailed plan that includes funding and staffing needs. Result teams review and rank the offers and compile a report, which is reviewed by the mayor. The mayor submits a budget to the city council for review and approval. New Orleans' fiscal years run from January 1 to December 30.[11]
2017
New Orleans' adopted operating budget for fiscal year 2017 was $1 billion.[12]
Priorities from the 2017 budget included:
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2016
New Orleans' adopted operating budget for fiscal year 2016 was $1 billion.[14]
2015
New Orleans' adopted operating budget for fiscal year 2015 was $966 million. The general fund made up 55 percent of the total amount. The general fund was allocated to five categories.[11]
Public safety: 60% of general fund
Some items that received funding in this category were:
- 100 new police vehicles
- A stronger homicide unit and the Multi Agency Gang Unit
- Five percent police officer pay raise
- Note: The New Orleans Civil Service Commission recommended a 10 percent pay raise, as part of a 20 percent increase over three years. The city council opted for the five percent raise, which was endorsed by Mayor Landrieu.[15]
- $12.3 million for the consent decree between the city and the U.S. Department of Justice, which included cameras in police cars, body cameras for officers and an early warning system for identifying bad officers.
- Increased funding for fire department and emergency medical services.
- Note: The $42 million for the fire fighters pension fund made it one of the most expensive items in the budget. It was cut by $1.6 million, which union representatives would fold into their operational budget.[15]
Open & effective government: 20% of general fund
Some items that received funding in this category were:
- Continued funding to 311 call center service
- One Stop Shop to improve processes for permits and licenses
Sustainable communities: 15% of general fund
Some items that received funding in this category were:
- Additional $900,000 put toward the blight reduction initiative
- Additional $1.5 million for roadway maintenance, including fixing potholes
- $16.2 million available for streetlight LED conversion, repairs and maintenance
Children & families: 3% of general fund
Some items that received funding in this category were:
- Funding for the New Orleans Recreation Department Commission increased by nearly $1.6 million
- Council on Aging received an additional $250,000 for the Carrollton Hollygrove Senior Center
- Mosquito, Termite and Rodent Control Board received over $2 million in funding
Economic development: 2% of general fund
Some items that received funding in this category were:
- $677,000 for an economic strategy to connect disadvantaged job seekers with new opportunities
- Funding for the NOLA Business Alliance to help companies relocate to the city
- Programs to support the film industry
- Full funding of Office of Supplier Diversity, which is tasked with helping the city meet goals in helping disadvantaged business enterprises
2014
New Orleans' adopted operating budget for fiscal year 2014 was $859,373,055.[16]
Contact information
Office of the Mayor
1300 Perdido St
2nd Floor
New Orleans, LA 70112
Phone: (504) 658-4900
Email: mayor@nola.gov
City Council
1300 Perdido Street
Second Floor West
New Orleans, LA 70112
Phone: (504) 658-1000
To contact individual council members, see here.
Ballot measures
The city of New Orleans is in Orleans Parish. A list of ballot measures in Orleans County is available here.
Lobbying
In 2013, New Orleans' federal lobbying-related expenses amounted to approximately $320,000.[17] The issues for which the city filed in 2013, as well as the number of reports, can be seen in the box below. The issues column lists the generic issues that lobbyists working for local governments are required by law to disclose on quarterly federal disclosure forms.[18][19] The reports column gives the number of reports lobbyists filed in regard to each generic issue. To learn more about the details of the specific issues for which New Orleans filed reports, read the federal disclosure forms by clicking the "Issues" links in the box below.
| Federal Lobbying Issues, 2013 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Reports | Issues | ||
| 14 | Fed Budget & Appropriations | ||
| 2 | Homeland Security | ||
| 2 | Transportation | ||
| 1 | Urban Development | ||
| 1 | Housing | ||
| 1 | Disaster & Emergency Planning | ||
| 1 | Economics & Econ Development | ||
Issues in the city
Mayor Landrieu fires city officials after widespread flooding
On August 8, 2017, Mayor Mitch Landrieu forced the removal of several executives of the city’s Sewerage and Water Board (S&WB) after Landrieu stated that the organization misled him about the operational status of various pumping stations in the city after heavy rain caused widespread flooding. While it was unclear whether the flooding would have been prevented if all pumps were operating properly, the mayor and some city council members stated that the S&WB did not provide accurate enough information about the situation to both them and the public. Landrieu called for, and received, the retirement or resignation of both the executive director and general superintendent of the S&WB, as well as the organization's top spokesperson and the city’s own public works director. On August 10, 2017, Landrieu also obtained city council approval to appoint an outside company to run S&WB’s operations until new executives were chosen. The Sewerage and Water Board is responsible for providing drinking water to city residents, making water available for firefighting purposes, and performing wastewater treatment and storm water drainage for the city.[20][21][22]
Nondiscrimination laws
In July 2015, the Movement Advancement Project described New Orleans, Louisiana, as a city or county that prohibited discrimination in employment on the basis of gender identity via ordinances that apply to public and private employers. At that time, a total of 71 of America's largest 100 cities prohibited private employers from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation, while 69 of those cities also prohibited discrimination based on gender identity. This did not include those jurisdictions that prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity for government employees.[23]
Nondiscrimination laws can cover a variety of areas, including public employment, private employment, housing, and public accommodations. Such laws may be enacted at the state, county, or city level.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "State and County Quick Facts," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Nola, "Mayor," accessed June 14, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Nola City Council, "Home," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Nola City Council, "Committees," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Nola, "Boards," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Candidate Inquiry," accessed March 5, 2017
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "2017 Elections," February 2017
- ↑ New York Times, "Mitch Landrieu Is Re-elected Mayor of New Orleans," February 2, 2014
- ↑ Sun Herald, "New Orleans Mayor: Voters have spoken - again," February 2, 2014
- ↑ Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 City of New Orleans, "2015 NOLA Adopted Budget," accessed November 20, 2015
- ↑ City of New Orleans, "2017-Adopted-Budget," accessed July 31, 2017
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ City of New Orleans, "2016-Adopted-Budget," accessed July 31, 2017
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 The Times Picayune, "NOPD loses, library wins as New Orleans City Council approves 2015 budget," November 20, 2014
- ↑ City of New Orleans, "2014 NOLA Adopted Budget," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ Open Secrets, "City of New Orleans, LA," accessed October 23, 2014
- ↑ U.S. House of Representatives: Office of the Clerk, "Lobbying Disclosure Act Guidance," accessed November 11, 2014
- ↑ Open Secrets, "Methodology," accessed November 11, 2014
- ↑ Nola.com, "New Orleans Mayor Landrieu plans to fire top officials over flooding," August 8, 2017
- ↑ Nola.com, "Mayor Landrieu to hire private firm to run Sewerage & Water Board," August 10, 2017
- ↑ Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans, "Home," accessed August 10, 2017
- ↑ Movement Advancement Project, "Local Employment Non-Discrimination Ordinances," accessed July 7, 2015
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