Mitch Landrieu

Early life

Landrieu was born and raised in the Broadmoor neighborhood of New Orleans, the fifth of nine children of Maurice "Moon" and Verna Satterlee Landrieu. 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. The couple has five children: Grace, Emily, Matthew, Benjamin, and William.

Landrieu has been a practicing attorney for fifteen years and was 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.

Legislator

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 before her, 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. As lieutenant governor, he continued 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 also 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 in New Orleans, is directed towards promoting cultural economic development opportunities through the strategic convening of cultural ambassadors and leaders from around the world. The first WCEF took place in October 2008. He has carried on this project as mayor and has even established a formal cultural economy office at City Hall.

1994 New Orleans mayoral election

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).

Lieutenant Governor

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 April 22 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.

2010 New Orleans mayoral election

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, 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. Landrieu is the first white person to hold the post since his father left office in 1978.

Mayor of New Orleans

Shortly after taking office as Mayor of New Orleans, Landrieu announced the appointment of Ronal W. Serpas as the new Superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department until the latter's resignation in August 2014.

In 2015, Landrieu called for the removal from prominent public display of 4 monuments, 3 honoring Confederate leaders and one honoring a short-lived, violent coup of the state government by the Crescent City White League. The New Orleans City Council approved their removal the same year. After various legal challenges to removal were struck down, on April 24, 2017, the first, the long contentious Battle of Liberty Place Monument was removed. He was criticized by opponents of its removal for his lack of transparency. The statues of Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and P. G. T. Beauregard as well as Confederate President Jefferson Davis. were removed in May 2017.

Spike Lee documentary

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.

Humanitarian causes

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 in support of Varis' and the Jazz Foundation's work to help save jazz musicians, especially those affected by Hurricane Katrina.

Election history

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First Ballot, October 24, 1987

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First Ballot, October 19, 1991

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First Ballot, February 5, 1994

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First Ballot, October 21, 1995

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First Ballot, October 23, 1999

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First Ballot, October 4, 2003

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First Ballot, April 22, 2006

Second Ballot, May 20, 2006

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First Ballot, October 20, 2007

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First Ballot, February 6, 2010

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First Ballot, February 1, 2014