Name
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First Name
Last Name
Email
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Which district are you running in?
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At-Large 1
At-large 2
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D
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1. Short-Term Rentals & Displacement: In neighborhoods like Tremé, whole-home short-term rentals now comprise over 10% of available housing, shrinking long-term options for residents. Although members of the current council have been adamant about addressing this issue, every month more permits are approved. Do you support stricter regulations on short-term rentals (e.g. Airbnb) to curb the displacement of long-time New Orleanians from their homes?
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YES
NO
If yes, what specific policies (such as caps on whole-home rentals, enforcement funding, or penalties) and timelines would you push for to protect affordable housing for residents? If no, explain how you would address housing affordability and prevent displacement without additional short-term rental regulations.
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2. Affordable Housing & Anti-Displacement Strategies: Community leaders in gentrifying areas have called for tools like inclusionary zoning and property tax relief for legacy homeowners to fight displacement. What legislative actions or programs will you champion to ensure housing justice in New Orleans? In your answer, please cite a concrete policy that you would prioritize to keep residents in their homes and prevent displacement.
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3. Mental Health and Addiction Services: Beyond emergency response, what is your plan to expand voluntary, community-based mental health and addiction treatment services across the city? Describe specific initiatives (e.g. syringe-exchange or harm-reduction programs, recovery housing, mobile outreach, drop-in support centers) and how you will partner with grassroots organizations and people with lived experience.
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4. Community-Based Violence Prevention: New Orleans neighborhoods have developed violence interruption teams, youth outreach, and other community-led public safety efforts to reduce reliance on policing. What is your plan to expand and support year-round, community-led public safety initiatives? Please provide an example of a program, policy, or budget change you would advocate for to make neighborhoods safer while centering community leadership.
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5. Summer Programming: This summer in Baltimore, “instead of leaning solely on law enforcement, the Mayor’s office [in Baltimore] took a more creative, community-rooted approach—repurposing city assets, redirecting funds, and rallying partners around a central question: What would it take to make summer safer and more fulfilling for our youth?” The answer resulted in “42 neighborhood-based youth camps . . . 29 funded literacy programs . . . Weekend rec center hours extended to 11 PM . . . Free public pool access . . . Pop-up events and block parties . . . Open school sites.” The results have been 1) lowest homicide rate in over 50 years; 2) 23% decrease in homicides; 3) 20% drop in nonfatal shootings; and 4) 62% overall decline in key violent crime categories.1 If elected to City Council, will you make a commitment now to make it a priority to create similar summer 2026 programming available to New Orleans’ youth as what has been in Baltimore?
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YES
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If yes, please explain how you intend to implement such programming. If your answer is no, what is your vision for building youth-focused, community-led diversion programs that support healing and prevent incarceration? How will you invest in mentorship, education, and job pathways for justice-involved or high-risk youth?
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6. Non-Carceral Crisis Response: Many people in the New Orleans jail have a diagnosed mental health issue, and some are self-medicating with a substance use disorder – a sign that jail is often used to manage mental illness and addiction. Would you support creating and funding a non-police crisis response team to handle mental health and addiction emergencies (instead of relying on armed officers and jail)?
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YES
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Please explain how you would implement such a program, and any other initiatives you would pursue to direct people toward treatment and services rather than incarceration.
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7. Jail Funding: The City provides the bulk of funding for the jail. Since Katrina, and the implementation of the federal consent decree covering the jail, hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent to construct a jail complex (which is already deteriorating, less than 10 years after construction) that has never been fully staffed. With the Phase III expansion forthcoming, what role do you believe City Council holds with regard to fiscal transparency and accountability on jail staffing, maintenance, construction, programming, and health care?
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8. Would you commit to fully funding proven medication assisted treatment programs for the several hundred detained people who suffer from serious addiction issues?
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YES
NO
9. Medical Care for Orleans Justice Center Residents: The City is ultimately responsible for the medical care received by residents at the Orleans Justice Center. As a Council Member, how will you ensure that the contractor providing medical services is meeting the medical needs of all OJC residents? Would you advocate for a public oversight board that includes voices of OJC residents to regularly monitor the contractor providing medical services at OJC?
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10. Support for Formerly Incarcerated Residents: About 2,500 New Orleans residents are in state prison on any given day, the vast majority of whom are Black. Many will return home each year facing barriers to jobs, housing, and voting. Will you advocate for initiatives that remove barriers for people returning from incarceration?
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YES
NO
If yes, describe at least one specific measure you’d champion. If no, explain your position on reentry support and how you would otherwise assist New Orleanians in reintegrating after incarceration.
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11. Defending Home Rule: In the past year, Louisiana state officials have overridden New Orleans’ local policies – (e.g. Governor deployed state police and even the National Guard in the city without local request, the Legislature proposed a constitutional amendment that would have allowed them to replace local jurisdictional control, the Governor has called for a state takeover of Sewerage & Water Board, and the Legislature enacted a law to force local law enforcement to cooperate with ICE). As a Council Member, what steps would you take to protect New Orleans’ right to self-governance and resist state overreach into local affairs? Please give a specific example of how you would respond if the state attempts to usurp local control – whether on matters of public safety, municipal regulations, or social policy – and how you would assert the priorities of New Orleanians in the face of state interference.
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12. Balancing Surveillance and Privacy: Recent investigations revealed that NOPD secretly used real-time facial recognition via a private camera network, scanning every face on certain streets and sending alerts to police, all without public oversight. Do you oppose the expansion of surveillance technologies – such as facial recognition, predictive policing algorithms, widespread license plate readers, social media crawling, and electronic monitoring – in New Orleans?
YES
NO
Please explain your stance on the use of such technologies. If yes, how would you work to limit or regulate these tools in order to protect privacy, civil liberties, and communities from over-surveillance? If your answer is no, what safeguards would you put in place to prevent abuses and racial bias in the use of surveillance tech?
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13. Sanctuary City Commitment: New Orleans has a longstanding policy (stemming from a 2013 federal consent decree settlement) that prohibits holding people in jail for ICE without a court order, except in serious violent cases. In 2024, however, Louisiana passed a law (Act 314) to ban such “sanctuary” policies and require local police and sheriffs to assist ICE. Will you defend New Orleans’ sanctuary city practices by opposing local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement?
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YES
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If yes, how would you use your Council role to protect immigrant residents? If no, please explain your view on whether and how local law enforcement should engage in immigration enforcement.
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14. Palestinian Solidarity & International Human Rights: Last year, as attacks on Gaza escalated, hundreds of New Orleanians urged the City Council to explicitly call for a ceasefire. The Council ultimately passed a “Statement of Peace” drafted without public input. Since that time, the Trump Administration has targeted legal residents who have voiced opposition to Israel’s activities, which include continued bombings and a blockade preventing food, medical supplies, and journalists from entering Gaza. Should the City Council use its platform to take clear stands on international human rights issues? Specifically, would you support a City Council resolution that explicitly condemns the ongoing violence against Palestinian civilians and calls for measures like an immediate Gaza ceasefire, an end to U.S. military aid fueling the conflict, and protection of free speech when criticizing a foreign government?
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YES
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Explain why you would or would not back such a resolution, and how you view the Council’s role in addressing global justice concerns that resonate with New Orleans communities.
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15. Neighborhood Investment & Basic Services: Across New Orleans, some neighborhoods – particularly historically Black and working-class areas – still struggle with crumbling infrastructure and blight. The Lower Ninth Ward, for example, was once a thriving community but remains marked by a slow, uneven recovery since Katrina. Even well-intended improvements, like the Gentilly Resilience District’s green infrastructure, raise concerns about “green gentrification” driving up costs for long-time residents. What will you do to ensure that infrastructure investments and city services (such as street repairs, drainage projects, blight removal, and regular trash collection) are delivered equitably to the neighborhoods that need them most? Please provide a specific policy or initiative you would pursue to close the gaps in infrastructure quality across our city.
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16. Parks Budget: The prior City Council amended the City’s Budget several times in order to allocate sufficient funding to build the Phase III, alleged mental health facility at OJC. These amendments included defunding money allocated for parks throughout the City. As a Council Member, will you guarantee that you will oppose budget amendments and ordinances that defund our City’s parks?
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YES
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17. Accountability for Entergy & Sewerage/Water Board: Entergy New Orleans has faced public outrage over repeated outages and high bills – for example, a May 2025 grid failure left over 100,000 customers without power with little warning – and the Sewerage & Water Board (SWB) has long struggled with boil-water advisories, billing errors, and drainage failures. Some community advocates have called for stronger oversight and even municipalization of the electric utility to prioritize reliability and equity. Would you support exploring public ownership of our electric utility (or other major structural changes) to improve service and accountability to New Orleanians? Why or why not? In your response, detail at least one action you would take regarding utility regulation to ensure residents have affordable, reliable power and water, and that utilities are held accountable to the public interest.
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18. Climate Equity & Sustainable Future: New Orleans is on the frontlines of the climate crisis – facing stronger hurricanes, extreme heat, more snow and freezing events, flooding, and subsidence. These impacts hit our City’s most vulnerable communities the hardest, from low-income families who can’t afford high energy bills to residents of flood-prone neighborhoods. The City has begun some efforts (for instance, a new Healthy Homes ordinance now requires landlords to provide air conditioning so that rental units can be kept at 80°F or below in hot months.). What additional steps will you take to advance clean energy, climate resilience, and equitable utility access for New Orleans? Please discuss at least one specific policy or initiative you would champion. How will your approach ensure that the benefits of climate resilience and the transition to clean energy reach those communities most impacted by environmental injustice and past disinvestment?
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In 50 words or less, what would you most like voters to know about you and your candidacy? Use this space to highlight the values, vision, or lived experience that shape your leadership and what you hope to bring as Mayor.
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