The race for New Orleans’ mayor is officially on.

Qualifying opens today for winter elections to replace Mayor Ray Nagin, who is prevented by term limits from running. The primary is set for Feb. 6, with a runoff a month later, if necessary.

Heading into the three-day qualifying period, at least eight people had declared plans to run. They include (top row left to right above) nonprofit founder Leslie Jacobs; state Sen. Ed Murray; attorney Rob Couhig; Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu; (bottom row left to right) consultant Troy Henry; fair housing advocate James Perry; former judge Nadine Ramsey; and businessman John Georges.

Qualifying closes Friday.

Read story at WWL.com.

Louisiana Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu has called a press conference at a New Orleans cafe for Tuesday morning, and appears to be on the verge of pulling a major surprise. After announcing last summer that he had decided to run again for mayor of New Orleans, sources say Landrieu is about to throw his hat in the ring.

Landrieu, the brother of Lousiana’s senior senator, Mary Landrieu and the son of former Mayor Moon Landrieu, would be joining a field of seven candidates in the race to succeed outgoing Mayor Ray Nagin. Landrieu is said to have changed his mind after deciding no other candidate had caught fire in the race, for which qualifying begins Wednesday.

Read full story at Southern Political Report.

9 Candidates Running In 2010 Mayoral Race Read the full story

Throwing a wrench into a crowded New Orleans mayoral contest that seemed to be all but set on the eve of qualifying, Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu appears poised to enter the race for the open seat today… Read the full story

Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu is reportedly entering the New Orleans mayor’s race despite announcing earlier this year that he would not make another run for the office. Read the full story

Rob Couhig, who has been aggressively running for mayor without actually declaring his intention to run, made it official tonight with a “Tele-Town Hall” conference call and an official announcement on his newly minted Facebook page, where he laid out his platform:

I will use these four conservative guidelines to make decisions as your mayor:

1. Will it make our City more Livable?

2. Will it make our City more Affordable?

3. How does it affect Economic Opportunity?

4. Is it Fair?

By using this matrix, we can Attack the issue of crime and integrity in the police department; Battle blight and multi-million dollar budget deficits by resisting the short term easy out of raising taxes; and, Create jobs for everyone who wants to work.

Read full story at Best of New Orleans Blog.

Jazz Trumpeter Says Research Doesn’t Support Campaign Read the full story

Supporters of businesswoman Leslie Jacobs hinted last week that her entry into the mayor’s race would be a bit unconventional.

Jacobs will make good on that prediction Wednesday when she rolls out a saturation television buy and a multimedia Web site featuring all manner of Internet campaigning, from Facebook to Twitter to blog blasts.

Jacobs spokeswoman Cheron Brylski said the heavy dose of TV advertising and social networking will take the place of the traditional kickoff in a hotel ballroom packed with family and friends.

“It’s going to be an explosion,” Brylski said. “It will be hard to be in New Orleans and miss some message from Leslie.”

Read full story at NOLA.com.

If we charged a committee of experts with the task of picking the absolute worst time of year to hold a citywide election in New Orleans, they could not possibly pick a more ill suited time for choosing a new mayor and City Council than the schedule we already follow.

Not just for Election Day itself, but also for the run-up to the big day and for the runoff.

Here we sit in mid-November, slightly more than three weeks shy of qualifying for the citywide elections. This should be a very busy time in New Orleans politics — but we have our priorities.

First, there’s Thanksgiving, which is next week. For many, it’s an abbreviated workweek, and for some it’s a week to worry what the kids are doing while we work.

Then we get two weeks of actual campaigning before qualifying (which is Dec. 9-11). But, right after qualifying closes at 5 p.m. on Dec. 11, the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah begins. For Christians, fuhgettaboutit. The stores already have Christmas decorations up, and the Yuletide spirit (read: shopping madness) will be in full swing starting the day after Thanksgiving.

Read full story at Best of New Orleans Blog.

In this roller-coaster ride that has become the race for Mayor of New Orleans — with candidates jumping in, dropping out or staying far away — we asked the NOLA.com community for help. Read the full story