MANDEVILLE, La. — The race for Mandeville mayor is Chad Bordelon’s first campaign for that office.
He hopes it will also be his last.
Bordelon’s campaign signs state his campaign concisely: “Fire the mayor. Hire a city manager.”
If he wins, he would work to get voters to approve a change to the Mandeville city charter that would see the mayor’s office abolished in favor of a city manager, a position appointed by the City Council.
That means he would be out of a job he’s now campaigning for.
Current Mandeville Mayor Donald Villere is term-limited.
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Bordelon said the idea behind the unusual tactic is to cut down on political bickering and to make government more efficient.
“We have a broad field of candidates in 2020,” Bordelon said. “The common thread is that none have managed 120 employees or a $25 million annual budget. The city of Mandeville is a dynamic business. We need professional help in order to run it like one.”
While there are no city managers in any Louisiana city, as much as 55 percent of municipalities across the country use that form of government.
But some Mandeville residents are skeptical.
"We need to keep it controlled by the people and the public, and I definitely wouldn't agree with that at all,” said David Hansen, a lifetime Mandeville resident.
“City managers, sometimes people can persuade them,” said Willie Serpas, another longtime Mandeville resident. “It's better to have a mayor.”
According to The Times-Picayune | New Orleans Advocate, during a forum earlier this week, the other four candidates for Mandeville mayor were asked if they would support a change to the city charter that Bordelon has proposed. Each candidate said yes.
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