The University of New Orleans Survey Research Center (SRC) has released the results of a live-interviewer telephone survey of likely voters in Orleans Parish conducted September 20–24, 2025. A total of 409 randomly selected respondents participated. The combined landline and cell phone sample was weighted to reflect the gender, age, race, and council district parameters of the Orleans Parish voter file obtained from the Louisiana Secretary of State. The margin of error is plus or minus 4.8 percent at the 95 percent level of confidence.
Key findings include:
- • A majority of likely voters (52 percent) believe the city is headed in the wrong direction.
• Most likely voters (51 percent) strongly disapprove of Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s job performance.
• Councilmember Helena Moreno holds a commanding lead in the mayoral race, receiving support from nearly half of respondents.
• Moreno performs especially well among the most politically engaged and habitual voters.
• State Representative Matthew Willard leads the race for Council At-Large, Division 1, though a high share of respondents remain undecided.
• Incumbent J.P. Morrell holds a substantial lead in the Councilmember At-Large, Division 2 contest.
• Michelle Woodfork holds a sizeable lead in the race for Orleans Parish sheriff.
The report also includes detailed breakdowns of voter opinion on the direction of the city, mayoral job approval ratings, and candidate support by race, gender, age, and council district.
“This survey reflects UNO’s commitment to providing high-quality, nonpartisan data that helps the community better understand local public opinion,” said Dr. Edward Chervenak, director of the Survey Research Center.
The project was supported by UNO faculty, staff and students, including participants from Dr. Chervenak’s Southern Politics and Research and Methods classes and Dr. Michael Pickering’s Comparative Democratization and Politics of International Economic Relations classes.
The full report is available on the UNO Survey Research Center's page.
