NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell's campaign issued a statement calling the recall effort against her a Fox News-led propaganda campaign meant to take away the voices of New Orleans voters.
"The recall effort to undermine and discredit the first Black woman Mayor of New Orleans is quickly being exposed as a Republican-backed maneuver by people with an agenda," a campaign spokesperson for Mayor LaToya Cantrell said. "It fits into a long history of taking away our vote and our voice. That’s why we have reason to believe a conservative DC firm has signed on to lead the effort. That’s why many GOP organizations in the city is encouraging people to sign the petition. That’s why Fox News is leading the propaganda charge."
The long-shot recall effort faces a steep hurdle. Twenty percent of all registered Orleans Parish voters must sign a recall petition in a short time frame to trigger a recall election. As of Aug. 1, there are 266,714 registered voters in Orleans Parish, which means a recall effort would need 53,343 signatures with names and addresses of registered voters to get a recall election on the ballot.
Cantrell's opponents will have 180 days to gather those signatures. At a recall event held in Lakeview earlier this week, organizers estimated roughly 2,100 people came out to sign the recall petition.
You can read the full statement from a campaign spokesperson below:
"The recall effort to undermine and discredit the first Black woman Mayor of New Orleans is quickly being exposed as a Republican-backed maneuver by people with an agenda," said a campaign spokesperson for Mayor LaToya Cantrell. "It fits into a long history of taking away our vote and our voice. That’s why we have reason to believe a conservative DC firm has signed on to lead the effort. That’s why many GOP organizations in the city are encouraging people to sign the petition. That’s why Fox News is leading the propaganda charge."
"Mayor Cantrell makes mistakes like every God-fearing person. But we can’t forget that she led us courageously through the pandemic and Hurricane Ida. We can’t forget her historic investments in streets, drainage, parks, and early childhood education. She also raised our city’s bond rating, making it easier to fund vital services, including public safety. When it comes to travel, she has been on the road to recover lost revenue by marketing New Orleans to the world. That’s fundamental to the work of any big city mayor."
"Crime is deeply personal to the mayor. She has an altar in her office where she prays over funeral programs of gun violence victims. She has embedded herself at NOPD roll calls to get a strong grasp of department needs. And she is fighting to end the federal consent decree which hurts recruitment, prevents them from chasing criminals, and buries them in burdensome and unnecessary paperwork."
"Ultimately it will take all of us - the entire New Orleans criminal justice system, state and federal officials, local business owners, everyday residents, all working together - to end the epidemic of crime we are facing. Every major U.S. city is struggling with this issue following the pandemic. Courts were closed, social services ended, and people were financially stressed."
"Mayor Cantrell hears your concerns and will continue to work tirelessly to address them. Let’s not let this Republican campaign undo our vote and distract our leaders from the real work that needs to get done."
"The people of our city elected Mayor Cantrell twice - by large margins. And when she succeeds, New Orleans succeeds. Let’s help her continue to do that."
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