Organizers of the LaToya Cantrell recall effort say they are now within 1,100 signatures of the nearly 50,000 they need to force a recall election this fall.
NoLaToya Campaign vice chair Eileen Carter told WWL's Newell Normand that they want more than the 1,029 signatures the campaign needs.
"We want to double that and triple it and quadruple it and all of that because, of course, we want to make sure that we have a nice cushion and we want to put an exclamation point on this," Carter said on Tuesday.
The campaign has until Ash Wednesday to collect the requisite number of signatures and to submit them to the Secretary of State's Office. For context, the campaign would have to gain 129 signatures per day between now and the deadline to reach its goal.
Cater says campaign leaders have been listening to voters, and that has helped the campaign gain more signatures.
"We did some polling earlier, and people liked consistent locations. So we switched into that model for these ending weeks so that people can be comfortable in knowing where they are and just drop off their mailers as they came in."
If the campaign gains enough signatures, voters would decide if Cantrell will remain in office during an election that could happen as early as this spring. Carter said if the recall petition effort is successful, no one would want the election process to drag on longer than necessary. Ultimately, Governor John Bel Edwards would select the election date. He would have four dates from which to choose: March 25, April 29, October 14, and November 18.
"I would hope that he would schedule the election in the spring so that we can get it done so we can choose on whether or not we want to keep this administration or if we can move on with a new mayor," Carter said. "I think it's beneficial for us to make sure that we get this done expeditiously and to make sure that our voices are heard."
If that election happens, it would mark the first time that a New Orleans official faces a recall election.
