Mayor LaToya Cantrell leaves behind a legacy shaped by historic achievements, major challenges, and questions that may take a courtroom to fully answer.
NEW ORLEANS — From Broadmoor to City Hall, Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s rise reshaped New Orleans politics — marked by historic firsts, major crises, and mounting controversy.
Cantrell first emerged as a political force in the years after Hurricane Katrina, serving as president of the Broadmoor Improvement Association. Cantrell became known as a fierce and organized advocate for residents.
“At the time, Gambit had a staff member who lived in Broadmoor, and he said to me, ‘Man, we have our neighborhood association president. She’s a real fire-breathing, tough, strong leader, and she’s got everybody organized, and her name is Latoya Cantrell,” Political Analyst Clancy Dubos said.
That work helped propel her into elected office. Soon, she was sitting on the New Orleans City Council, representing District B, where political observers say she built credibility by delivering tangible results, including a ban on smoking in public places.
“She paid her dues,” political pollster Silas Lee said. “She established not only a name for herself, but she was able to give voters a reason to support her by delivering results, that was saving Broadmoor; she was effective on the city council, banning smoking in public places. That was a major accomplishment,” he said.
In May 2018, Cantrell made history when she was sworn in as New Orleans’ first woman mayor.
Pollster and Political Analyst Silas Lee, who also taught Cantrell at Xavier University, says her tenure included notable accomplishments during pivotal moments in the city’s recent history. Those include steering New Orleans through the COVID-19 pandemic, navigating the aftermath of the Hard Rock Hotel collapse, responding to a major cyberattack, and overseeing the expansion of Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.
But Lee and others say Cantrell’s confidence eventually became a political liability.
“The challenge became the swagger overwhelmed the substance,” Lee said, noting a growing perception that the mayor was increasingly disconnected from voters.
That perception intensified amid a series of controversies — culminating on August 15, 2025, when Cantrell was indicted by a federal grand jury. She and her former bodyguard, Jeffrey Vappie, were charged with conspiracy, wire fraud, obstruction of justice, and other counts. Cantrell became the first sitting mayor in New Orleans history to face a federal indictment.
With a trial still pending, Lee says Cantrell’s legacy remains unresolved.
“[Her legacy is] depending on the outcome of the trial,” Lee said. “However, that will not be a footnote. That will be one of the opening sentences in the first paragraph of her political biography.”
As her time in City Hall comes to an end, Mayor LaToya Cantrell leaves behind a legacy shaped by historic achievements, major challenges, and questions that may take a courtroom to fully answer.
► Get breaking news from your neighborhood delivered directly to you by downloading the new FREE WWL-TV News app now in the IOS App Store or Google Play.