Trash talk, dropouts and burned signs in New Orleans' heated races

✂️ Mayoral field shrinks: Arthur Hunter dropped out last week and threw his support behind Royce Duplessis.

• Helena Moreno is still the front-runner in the polls and in fundraising, with Oliver Thomas and Duplessis jostling for position.
• They've been busy opening campaign headquarters, fundraising and hiring staff.
• See the full list of 12 candidates from Verite.

🍿 JP Morrell weighs in: The City Council president hasn't endorsed anyone in the mayoral race, but he's made a feisty video challenging Duplessis' statements about the French Quarter trash contract.

• Morrell says Duplessis wanted to meet him at the corner of "f**k around and find out." Duplessis hit back.
• Morrell's video includes a note about Thomas, saying "too much finger pointing."
• When asked whether Morrell would formally endorse someone, his spokesperson told Axios the councilmember was focused on his own campaign.

👀 Vandalism: Delisha Boyd, a candidate for Moreno's current council seat, says somebody burned one of her campaign signs.

🚔 Sheriff's troubles: Susan Hutson, who is campaigning to keep her job, was already in trouble after 10 inmates escaped from the Orleans Justice Center. One remains on the run nearly three months later.

• Then, the sheriff's department mistakenly released the wrong inmate. He still hasn't been caught.
• Hutson was most recently held in contempt of court for failing to provide deputies for weekend court sessions. She could face jail time, but it's unlikely, according to The Times-Picayune.

🤳🏻 Social media: Moreno is making an effort to incorporate content creators and influencers into her campaign.

• She hosted a pool party at The Chloe for her "Creator Krewe" last month and has another event planned next week at Jam NOLA.
• The attendees include some of the bigger accounts in town: @tamica, @ron.orleans, @alexx_robinson, @scotpilie_wx and @olsenventures.
• Reggieart, JDfromthe504, Byronstephancole and GovernorMonsta have also been vocal about the candidates.

🗣️ So many forums: Candidates have been on stages at least weekly telling voters about themselves and their platforms.

• They've been panel settings so far with some hot seat questions. We're ready for a spicy debate.
• Catch the action in person at upcoming forums from the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee, the Downtown Development District and the New Orleans Chamber of Commerce.

🔮 The intrigue: Will Mayor LaToya Cantrell endorse a successor? And more importantly, will the candidates want support from the unpopular leader?

• Moreno has been Cantrell's most vocal critic so far, with her recent ad calling city services a dumpster fire. Duplessis has taken jabs at Cantrell and the current council too.
• Cantrell emphasized her longtime friendship with Thomas at a city event last week but didn't mention his campaign, according to Axios' Chelsea Brasted.
• Her office tells Axios they don't have any information about her future intentions.

What's next: The next round of campaign finance reports are due in early September.

• The primary is Oct. 11, with the general election in November.
• The last day to register to vote in person is Sept. 10.

Go deeper

• New Orleans' mayoral hopefuls seek to edge out competition
• Candidates pitch big change at town hall