New Orleans’ Mayor Has Election Lead
Sidney Barthelemy, New Orleans’ second black mayor, was expected to defeat a white lawyer for a second term Saturday after a campaign marked on both sides by accusations of race-baiting.
The 47-year-old mayor, who spent 16 years in politics without losing an election, faced a strong challenge from Donald Mintz, 46, who was making his first run for elective office. The vote was expected to be split along racial lines.
Turnout was predicted at 55% to 60% of New Orleans’ 237,000 registered voters, more than 54% of whom are black.
Recent polls showed Barthelemy had erased Mintz’s early lead and was about a dozen percentage points ahead. Both are Democrats.
Herman J. (Buster) Bustamente, a Democrat, and black businessman Rudy E. Mills Sr., an independent, also were running but were expected to draw few votes.
The winner needed more than half of the vote to avoid a runoff March 3.
Both Mintz and Barthelemy denied the allegations of race-baiting and called them evidence that the other side was desperate for an issue.
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