Community activist Belden Batiste and former City Hall staffer Eileen Carter have officially filed a recall petition against Mayor LaToya Cantrell. The Louisiana Secretary of State confirmed the filing on Friday.
Cantrell has faced increasing criticism from New Orleans residents over the last several weeks, particularly regarding her travel expenses and rising levels of violent crime across the city.
In order for the recall to be successful, the petition needs 20% of qualified electors – or 53,000 eligible New Orleans voters – to sign the petition within the next 180 days. Historically, recall efforts are rarely successful; in the past eight years, only six recalls have gathered enough signatures, and only two were successful in the state.
“The mayor is working 24 hours a day, seven days a week to solve the problems of the city,” director of the Mayor’s Office of Communications, Gregory Joseph, said in a statement. “Whether it is public safety, sanitation, development. This mayor cares about every person in the city and lifting the city. This is a world-class city, and we are going to keep on striving to make it the best possible that’s what she’s going to continue to do.”
You can view the full petition here.
