New Orleans mayoral candidate Arthur Hunter announced Thursday (Aug. 7) that he will be dropping out of the race and endorsing one of his opponents, state Sen. Royce Duplessis.
“Don’t vote for me. Vote for Royce Duplessis,” Hunter said at a press conference announcing his decision. “But let me be very clear: I’m stepping out of the race, but I’m not stepping away. … I’ll still be here, side by side with Royce.”
For months, the mayoral race was assumed to be a three-way contest between New Orleans City Councilmembers Helena Moreno and Oliver Thomas and former Criminal Court Judge Hunter – with Hunter placing third in available polling data.
But weeks after Duplessis entered the race, a July poll found that Hunter fell to fourth with just 5% support. That was nearly ten percentage points behind Duplessis, his closest competition, who had 14% support — just behind Thomas’ 16%.
In the money race, campaign finance reports show that Hunter has raised $235,000 since the beginning of the year, compared to $166,000 for the Duplessis campaign. Though Duplessis has raised less money this year, he didn’t formally announce his candidacy until late June. His receipts include $19,000 he raised over just two days shortly after the announcement.
Thus far, Moreno has remained the clear lead in the race, in both polling and fundraising, with 47% support in the July poll and more than $1.3 million in campaign contributions since the beginning of the year.
Hunter is a familiar face in the New Orleans political scene. A former New Orleans Police Department officer, he was later elected judge in the Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. As a judge, Hunter was known for his work advocating and creating programs to support mental health and re-entry.
After retiring in early 2020 after 23 years on the bench, he ran for Orleans Parish District Attorney that fall, coming in third with 27.7% of the vote in the primary election. Most recently, he launched the Orleans Career Project at Delgado Community College, which provides education and career training to residents.
The 2025 New Orleans municipal election — which includes the mayoral race as well as races for City Council and Orleans Parish Sheriff, among others — will take place on Oct. 11. For races in which no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a runoff election is scheduled for Nov. 15. Read Verite News’ 2025 Election Guide for more on the upcoming election.
This is a developing story and will be updated.