| Mitch Landrieu | |
|---|---|
| Mitch Landrieu, January 11, 2010 | |
| 61st Mayor of New Orleans, Louisiana | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office May 3, 2010 |
|
| Preceded by | Ray Nagin |
| 56th Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana | |
| In office January 11, 2004 – May 3, 2010 |
|
| Governor | Kathleen Blanco Bobby Jindal |
| Preceded by | Kathleen Blanco |
| Succeeded by | Scott Angelle |
| Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives for the 89th District |
|
| In office 1988–2004 |
|
| Preceded by | Mary Landrieu |
| Succeeded by | Timothy G. Burns |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 16, 1960 New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Cheryl P. Quirk |
| Residence | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Mitchell Joseph "Mitch" Landrieu[1] ( /ˈlændruː/ lan-drew;[2] born August 16, 1960) is the Mayor of New Orleans, former Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana, and a member of the Landrieu family. Landrieu is a member of the Democratic Party and a Roman Catholic. He is the son of former New Orleans mayor and Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Moon Landrieu and the brother of the senior U.S. Senator from Louisiana, Mary Landrieu. In 2007 he won a second term as lieutenant governor in the October 20, 2007 jungle primary by defeating two Republicans: State Representative Gary J. Beard and Sammy Kershaw. He was elected Mayor of New Orleans on February 6, 2010, garnering 66 per cent of the city-wide vote and claiming victory in 365 of the city's 366 voting precincts.
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Landrieu was born the fifth of nine children to Moon and Verna Landrieu. He grew up in the Broadmoor neighborhood of New Orleans. After graduating from Jesuit High School in 1978, he enrolled at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. where he majored in political science and theatre. In 1985 he earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Loyola University Law School in New Orleans.
Landrieu is married to Cheryl P. Landrieu, also an attorney, and resides in New Orleans. They have five children: Grace, Emily, Matthew, Benjamin, and William.
Landrieu has been a practicing attorney for fifteen years and is president of International Mediation & Arbitration, Ltd. He is a member of the Supreme Court Task Force on Alternative Dispute Resolution which was responsible for developing the pilot mediation program in Orleans Parish. Landrieu is trained in mediation and negotiation by the Harvard Law School Negotiation Project, the American Arbitration Association, and the Attorney Mediator's Institute. Landrieu has also taught alternative dispute resolution as an adjunct professor at Loyola University Law School.
Landrieu was elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives in 1987, where he served for sixteen years in the seat previously held by his sister and his father.
Landrieu led the legislative effort to reform Louisiana's juvenile justice system with a focus on rehabilitation and reform as opposed to punishment and incarceration. He continues to chair the Juvenile Justice Commission, the entity created by the legislation to implement the reforms. In January, 2004, Governor Kathleen Blanco endorsed the Commission's recommendations.
Landrieu led the effort by a coalition of artists, venue owners, and other interested parties who were successful in repealing the Orleans Parish "amusement tax", a 2% tax on gross sales at any establishment that features live music. As an attorney, Landrieu brought a case to court that resulted in the tax being ruled unconstitutional. He continued the fight by bringing the issue to the New Orleans City Council, who voted to repeal the tax. As a legislator, Landrieu sponsored a bill to repeal the law that allowed the tax to exist.
Landrieu crafted legislation to fund the Louisiana Cancer Research Consortium of New Orleans, a partnership between the Louisiana State University and Tulane University Health Sciences Centers. The cancer center will house state-of-the-art cancer research equipment and laboratories, significant because Louisiana has the nation's highest cancer mortality rate according to the American Cancer Society.
One of Landrieu's most ambitious projects as Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana has been the creation of the World Cultural Economic Forum (WCEF). The Forum, held annually at the New Orleans Convention Center, is directed towards promoting cultural economic development opportunities through the strategic convening of cultural ambassadors and leaders from around the world. The first WCEF is scheduled to take place in October 2008.
In 1994 Landrieu made an unsuccessful bid for the office of Mayor of New Orleans; the office went to Marc Morial, the son of another former mayor (the contest between sons of former mayors prompted some commentators to joke about establishing a tradition of primogeniture for the city's top office).
Mitch Landrieu's 2003 campaign for Lieutenant Governor was his first bid for statewide office in Louisiana. In a field of six candidates, Landrieu garnered 53 percent of the vote and won outright in the Louisiana open primary, thus avoiding a general election. His principal opponents were three Republicans, former U.S. Representative Clyde C. Holloway of Rapides Parish, former Lieutenant Governor Melinda Schwegmann of New Orleans, and businessman Kirt Bennett of Baton Rouge.
In February 2006, Landrieu officially announced he would run for mayor of New Orleans in the 22 April election. Before Hurricane Katrina the incumbent Ray Nagin was widely expected to be reelected with little difficulty, but post-disaster problems and controversies had left many New Orleanians interested in new leadership.
In the election of April 22, preliminary results showed Landrieu with the second most votes, with 29% of the vote to Nagin's 38%. Nagin and Landrieu faced each other in a run off election on May 20. Had Landrieu won, he would have been the first white mayor of New Orleans since his father left office in 1978.
With unofficial results showing 53% of the vote for Nagin, Landrieu conceded defeat shortly before 10:30 pm on election night.
Although Landrieu had at first indicated he did not plan to run for mayor, in December 2009 he announced he would be running in the 2010 New Orleans mayoral election,[3][4] in a bid to succeed Ray Nagin, who was term-limited.
Landrieu won with some 67% of the vote, with wide support across racial and demographic lines. His outright victory over 10 challengers in the first round of voting eliminated the need for a runoff election.[5][6]
Landrieu was one of the participants in filmmaker Spike Lee's documentaries When The Levees Broke: A Requiem In Four Acts and If God Is Willing and Da Creek Don't Rise.[7]
In 2009 Mitch Landrieu became a supporter of The Jazz Foundation of America. He flew to NYC to present Agnes Varis with the coveted "Saint of the Century" Award at the Jazz Foundation of America's annual benefit concert "A Great Night in Harlem," at the Apollo Theater[8] in support of Mrs. Varis's and the Jazz Foundations work to help save Jazz musicians especially those affected by Hurricane Katrina.
State Representative, 90th Representative District, 1987
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, October 24, 1987
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 4,525 (50%) | Elected |
| Lyn "Mrs. Woody" Koppel | Democratic | 2,973 (33%) | Defeated |
| Others | n.a. | 1,484 (17%) | Defeated |
State Representative, 89th Representative District, 1991
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, October 19, 1991
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 8,522 (63%) | Elected |
| Marilyn Thayer | Republican | 4,939 (37%) | Defeated |
Mayor of New Orleans, 1994
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, February 5, 1994
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Donald Mintz | Democratic | 56,305 (37%) | Runoff |
| Marc Morial | Democratic | 49,604 (32%) | Runoff |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 14,689 (10%) | Defeated |
| Others | n.a. | 32,104 (21%) | Defeated |
State Representative, 89th Representative District, 1995
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, October 21, 1995
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 6,692 (57%) | Elected |
| Jeff Crouere Jr. | Republican | 3,049 (26%) | Defeated |
| Others | n.a. | 2,057 (17%) | Defeated |
State Representative, 89th Representative District, 1999
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, October 23, 1999
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 6,575 (70%) | Elected |
| Randy Evans | Republican | 2,765 (30%) | Defeated |
Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana, 2003
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, October 4, 2003
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 674,803 (53%) | Elected |
| Clyde Holloway | Republican | 249,668 (19%) | Defeated |
| Melinda Schwegmann | Republican | 215,402 (17%) | Defeated |
| Others | n.a. | 141,006 (11%) | Defeated |
Mayor of New Orleans, 2006
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, April 22, 2006
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Ray Nagin | Democratic | 41,561 (38%) | Runoff |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 31,551 (29%) | Runoff |
| Ron Forman | Democratic | 18,764 (17%) | Defeated |
| Robert "Rob" Couhig | Republican | 10,312 (10%) | Defeated |
| Others | n.a. | 6,160 (6%) | Defeated |
Second Ballot, May 20, 2006
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Ray Nagin | Democratic | 59,460 (52%) | Elected |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 54,131 (48%) | Defeated |
Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana, 2007
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, October 20, 2007
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 702,320 (57%) | Elected |
| Sammy Kershaw | Republican | 376,336 (30%) | Defeated |
| Gary Beard | Republican | 130,978 (11%) | Defeated |
| Others | n.a. | 31,544 (2%) | Defeated |
Mayor of New Orleans, 2010
Threshold > 50%
First Ballot, February 6, 2010
| Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
| Mitch Landrieu | Democratic | 58,276 (66%) | Elected |
| Troy Henry | Democratic | 12,275 (14%) | Defeated |
| John Georges | Democratic | 8,189 (9%) | Defeated |
| Robert "Rob" Couhig | Republican | 4,874 (5%) | Defeated |
| Others | n.a. | Defeated |
| Louisiana House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Mary Landrieu (D) |
State Representative, 90th Representative District 1988–1992 |
Succeeded by Matthew G. "Pete" Schneider, III (R) |
| Preceded by James St. Raymond (R) |
State Representative, 89th Representative District 1992–2004 |
Succeeded by Timothy G. Burns (R) |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Kathleen Blanco (D) |
Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana January 12, 2004 – May 3, 2010 |
Succeeded by Scott Angelle (D) |
| Preceded by Ray Nagin (D) |
Mayor of New Orleans May 3, 2010 – present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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