NEW ORLEANS - With this city's survival and reputation at stake, New
Orleanians chose to stay with the man who led them through this nation's
most devastating natural disaster - Mayor C. Ray Nagin.
Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu conceded the race before a stunned crowd at 10:20
p.m., congratulating Nagin on his victory.
Complete but unofficial returns show Nagin besting Landrieu with 52 percent
of the vote.
"This was a hard-fought campaign," said Landrieu, flanked by his family. "It
was fought well within the lines of political discourse. The nation watched
the people of New Orleans conduct themselves in a dignified, thoughtful way.
And we have decided that come hell or high water, and we've had both, we are
going to find common ground and find a way to rebuild this great city."
Minutes later, Nagin greeted his supporters in the spirit of "peace," "love"
and "unity," saying his victory "sets the stage for recovery."
It's time for the city to heal, Nagin said.
"If we're unified, there's nothing we cannot do," he said. "It's time for
this community to start the healing process."
Late Saturday, the incumbent didn't give what he called a "typical Ray Nagin
speech."
Instead, he ended his remarks using the words of Gandhi.
"First they ignore you. Then they laugh at you. Then they fight you. And
then you win," said Nagin, as the crowd erupted.
It would appear that many voters decided to give Nagin another opportunity
to complete the job of revitalizing New Orleans he began before the storm.
Nagin managed to appeal to black voters in a way he hadn't before Hurricane
Katrina, convincing them that "now is not the time to change leadership."
Mail-in ballots and early votes cast at satellite centers around the state
were running higher than in the April runoff - more than 25,000 total,
according to Secretary of State Al Ater.
Displaced voters also drove in to vote from cities across the South, just as
many thousands did on April 22.
Carolyn Mutin-Schexnayder, who lives in Houston now, made the long journey
home Saturday, hoping her presence here would speak volumes.
"This is a big part of history-making," she said. "It's an emotional day.
People who never considered voting before were eager to cast a ballot this
time around. Collectively, our votes are going to be our voices. This is
what we use to speak."
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3877586.html
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