1998 New Orleans mayoral election

The New Orleans mayoral election of 1998 was held on February 7, 1998, and resulted in the reelection of incumbent Marc Morial to a second term as Mayor of New Orleans.[1]

1998 New Orleans Mayoral Election

← 1994 February 7, 1998 (1998-02-07) 2002 →
 
Candidate Marc Morial Kathleen Cresson
Party Democratic Democratic
Popular vote 92,378 22,767
Percentage 79.27% 19.54%

Elections in Louisiana—with the exception of U.S. presidential elections—follow a variation of the open primary system. Candidates of any and all parties are listed on one ballot; voters need not limit themselves to the candidates of one party. Unless one candidate takes more than 50% of the vote in the first round, a run-off election is then held between the top two candidates, who may in fact be members of the same party. In this election, no run-off was needed as Morial won over 50% of the vote in the first round.

Results[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Marc H. Morial (incumbent) 92,378 79.27
Democratic Kathleen Cresson 22,767 19.54
Other Paul D. Borello 1,398 1.2
Total votes 116,543

Marc Morial won an easy re-election, with the widest margin of victory in a New Orleans election in several decades. Neither of his opponents - lawyer Kathleen Cresson and arts store manager Paul Borrello - were particularly well-known. With the re-election of the popular Morial widely seen as a foregone conclusion months before election day, the race met with unusual apathy among the city's media and electorate. Debates were not televised, no polls were commissioned, and only 41% of New Orleans electors bothered to vote.

References

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  1. ^ Louisiana Secretary of State Election Results, 7 Saturday 1998, Mayor, City of New Orleans.
  2. ^ "Voter Portal". Louisiana Secretary of State. Retrieved January 4, 2020.

Sources

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Preceded by
1994 mayoral election
New Orleans mayoral elections Succeeded by
2002 mayoral election