Conversation about new mayor, Moreno
She is taking charge, and acting wisely so far
(Jan. 13, 2026) As Helena Moreno prepared to be sworn in as New Orleans’ new mayor, columnists Stephanie Grace, Will Sutton and Quin Hillyer sat down to discuss how she handled the transition and what they’ll be watching after she takes the oath of office….
Grace: Helena Moreno was elected mayor of New Orleans in October. What can you glean from how she has conducted herself and what she has been doing since then?
Hillyer: Well, I have never seen an incoming executive administration at any level of government be so much like the actual acting administration before officially taking office. In this case, that was a good and necessary thing, but it’s definitely unusual.
Sutton: Do you think that that’s true even with presidential transitions, when there is an outgoing presidential administration and there’s so much excitement about a new president starting, and practically anything the president-elect says makes news?
Grace: This is different. Moreno has functioned, as much as one in her shoes can, as the mayor. She’s almost been a dual officeholder, as the incoming mayor and still on the City Council, so that enabled her to be very involved in putting together the budget that she has to enact starting Jan. 12. But it’s more than that. It’s going to the Legislature and being the face of the city in asking for a loan. It’s being the one to speak about the Border Patrol coming to town very eloquently, as both a public official and also someone with Latina heritage. There can only be one mayor at a time, but this arrangement has pushed the boundaries of that thesis.
Hillyer: Even with a friendly transfer of power, you do not have this level of the new person in effect running things. Granted, LaToya Cantrell vetoed the budget, which was overridden. But aside from that, basically everything that Moreno has done, it’s been not just because the outgoing chief executive allowed her to, but against some of the wishes of the outgoing chief executive…. [Above is less than a fourth of the conversation. For the rest, follow this link.]
