1982 New Orleans mayoral election

Last updated

1982 New Orleans Mayoral Election
Flag of New Orleans, Louisiana.svg
  1977 February 6, 1982 (first round)
March 20, 1982 (runoff)
1986  
  Dutch Morial Crop 1985.jpg 3x4.svg William Jefferson, official photo (cropped).jpg
Candidate Ernest Morial Ron Faucheux Bill Jefferson
Party Democratic Democratic Democratic
First round75,929
46.91%
73,441
23.61%
11,327
7%
Runoff100,703
53.2%
88,583
46.8%
Eliminated

Mayor before election

Ernest Morial
Democratic

Elected Mayor

Ernest Morial
Democratic

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1982 resulted in the reelection of Ernest Morial to a second term as mayor of New Orleans.

Contents

Background

Elections in Louisiana—with the exception of U.S. presidential elections—follow a variation of the open primary system. Candidates of any and all parties are listed on one ballot; voters need not limit themselves to the candidates of one party. Unless one candidate takes more than 50% of the vote in the first round, a run-off election is then held between the top two candidates, who may in fact be members of the same party. In this election, the first round of voting was held on February 6, 1982, and the runoff was held on March 20.

Candidates

Campaign

Throughout the campaign, challengers Faucheux and Jefferson were able to make Morial the main campaign issue. Faucheux accused Morial of allowing the New Orleans Police Department to deteriorate and crime to rise, and emphasized the mayor's poor relations with City Council and the state Legislature. Jefferson accused Morial of having done little to aid the city's African-American community or to curb police brutality. Both major challengers argued that the mayor's abrasive personality hampered his leadership of the city.

Morial defended his record as mayor and emphasized the economic growth that had occurred during his term as mayor, including the development of many new buildings in the Central Business District, the construction of the New Orleans Convention Center, and industrial development in New Orleans East. He also cited his progress in eliminating bureaucracy and streamlining city governance. Morial was aided by endorsements by several black political organizations, including BOLD and SOUL, as well as the Louisiana Weekly newspaper and the Regular Democratic Organization.

Faucheux stressed his anti-crime credentials during his time in the state legislature, and made the transferral of sales tax revenue from the state to the city one of his major campaign promises. Faucheux was endorsed by the Alliance for Good Government.

Jefferson also emphasized that the city would need new sources of revenue, and promised to work to eliminate the homestead exemption on real estate tax. Jefferson's campaign was damaged by accusations by some black leaders that he was trying to divide the black community by challenging the city's first black mayor and forcing him into a runoff against a white opponent.

Results

Primary, February 6

CandidateVotes receivedPercentage
Ernest Morial (incumbent)75,92946.91%
Ron Faucheux 73,44145.37%
William J. Jefferson 11,3277%
Rodney Fertel4620.29%
Rashaad Ali3550.22%
Leon Waters3470.21%

While Morial was able to come out with more votes than Faucheux in the primary, four years of declining popularity meant that Morial received only about 15% of the white vote, compared with the 29% he received in the election of 1977. Morial received 90% of the black vote, while Faucheux was only able to get 1% of the black vote. Jefferson received about 7% support from both white and black voters.

Runoff, March 20

CandidateVotes receivedPercentage
Ernest Morial (incumbent)100,70353.2%
Ron Faucheux88,58346.8%

Morial was aided in the runoff by a concerted effort to bring out the black vote, using the slogan "Keep the Drive Alive." Black voters turned out in significantly higher proportion compared to their white counterparts; many black leaders framed the election as a chance to cement the political gains won by the civil rights movement and by the subsequent election of Morial to his first term.

Faucheux's endorsement by former mayor Moon Landrieu had little impact on the election, coming only three days before the runoff. According to the Times-Picayune's post-election analysis, Morial won by "holding a significant white crossover vote while increasing the black turnout and denying any of it to Faucheux."

Sources

Preceded by
1977 mayoral election
New Orleans mayoral elections Succeeded by
1986 mayoral election

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Jefferson (politician)</span> American politician (born 1947)

William Jennings Jefferson is an American former politician from Louisiana whose career ended after his corruption scandal and conviction. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for nine terms from 1991 to 2009 as a member of the Democratic Party. He represented Louisiana's 2nd congressional district, which includes much of the greater New Orleans area. He was elected as the state's first black congressman since the end of Reconstruction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernest Nathan Morial</span> African-American politician (1929–1989)

Ernest Nathan "Dutch" Morial, was an American politician and a leading civil rights advocate. He was the first black mayor of New Orleans, serving from 1978 to 1986. He was the father of Marc Morial, who served as Mayor of New Orleans from 1994 to 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sidney Barthelemy</span> American politician

Sidney John Barthelemy is a former American political figure. The second African American to hold the New Orleans mayoral chair, he was a member of the Louisiana State Senate from 1974 to 1978 and a member at-large of the New Orleans City Council from 1978 to 1986. He served as mayor of New Orleans from 1986 to 1994. He is a member of the Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The first round of the New Orleans mayoral election of 2006 took place on April 22, 2006; a runoff between incumbent Mayor Ray Nagin and Louisiana Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu took place on May 20, resulting in reelection for Mayor Nagin. The Mayor of New Orleans is the top official in New Orleans' mayor-council system of government.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The New Orleans mayoral election of 2002 was an election for Mayor of New Orleans; the primary round of voting was held on February 2, 2002, followed by a runoff on March 2. It resulted in the election of Ray Nagin as mayor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2003 Louisiana gubernatorial election</span>

The 2003 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on November 15, 2003 to elect the Governor of Louisiana. Incumbent Republican Governor Mike Foster was not eligible to run for re-election to a third term because of term limits established by the Louisiana Constitution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1998 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1998 was held on February 7, 1998, and resulted in the reelection of incumbent Marc Morial to a second term as Mayor of New Orleans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1994 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1994 was held on March 5, 1994 and resulted in the election of Marc Morial as Mayor of New Orleans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1990 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1990 resulted in the reelection of Sidney Barthelemy to a second term as mayor of New Orleans.

Ron Forman is the head of the Audubon Nature Institute and was one of the leading candidates in the 2006 New Orleans mayoral election. A past president of the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, Ron Forman began his tenure with Audubon Park and Zoological Garden in 1972 as City Hall liaison. Made Deputy Director in 1973 and Executive Director in 1977, the major transformation of Audubon Zoo from an "urban ghetto" to an "urban Eden" was underway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1946 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1946 was held on January 22, 1946. It resulted in the defeat of incumbent mayor Robert Maestri and the election of deLesseps Morrison as Mayor of New Orleans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1986 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1986 resulted in the election of Democrat Sidney Barthelemy as mayor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1977 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1977 resulted in the election of Ernest Morial as the first African-American mayor of New Orleans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 Louisiana gubernatorial election</span>

The 1960 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on April 19, 1960.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1995 Louisiana gubernatorial election</span>

The 1995 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on November 18, 1995, to elect the governor of Louisiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election</span>

The 1991 Louisiana gubernatorial election resulted in the election of Edwin Edwards to his fourth non-consecutive term as governor of Louisiana. The election received national and international attention due to the unexpectedly strong showing of David Duke, a former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, who had ties to other white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Louisiana</span>

The 2008 congressional elections in Louisiana to determine representation for the state of Louisiana in the United States House of Representatives occurred November 4, 2008. Louisiana has seven seats in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected will serve in the 111th Congress from January 4, 2009 until January 3, 2011. The election coincided with the 2008 U.S. presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helena Moreno</span> American politician

Helena Nancy Moreno is a Mexican-American realtor, equestrienne, former journalist, and politician serving as the president of the New Orleans City Council and First Division Councilmember-at-Large.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Louisiana gubernatorial election</span> State election in the United States

The 2015 Louisiana gubernatorial election was held on November 21, 2015, to elect the governor of Louisiana. Incumbent Republican Governor Bobby Jindal was not eligible to run for re-election to a third term because of term limits established by the Louisiana Constitution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 New Orleans mayoral election</span>

The 2017 New Orleans mayoral election was held on November 18, 2017. On October 14 all candidates competed on one ballot regardless of party registration.