Within a few hours after the primary was decided, requests for Anybody But Batt yard signs at this website jumped dramatically. Perhaps some voters smell blood and (to mix our metaphors) want to pile on.

In light of this, we think Jay should concede. It would save him, Ms Guidry, and District A from a bruising runoff campaign. Jay took a big hit in this election, and is no longer the front runner. While we are loathe to hit a man while he is down, we will continue to alert the public to the facts about Mr. Batt if he chooses to run. A victory by Jay, while not mathematically impossible, is highly unlikely. The question is what will Jay put first: District A or his ego.

Read on for our by-the-numbers analysis of the primary vote...

90 days before primary
10 days before primary
Special Report
Special Report
Special Report
Election Day Expenditures
10 Days Prior to Gen

180 days before primary
Special Report
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Amended 10 days before primary
Special Report
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Election Day Exp Gen
40 days after gen

You can download and view most of Jay's campaign finance reports here. You'll see the contributions he took in from bars and developers and the way he spent that money, including hundreds of visits to fancy restaurants, campaign payments to the political machines, including BOLD, LIFE and Bill Jefferson's Progressive Democrats, and who wrote the big checks. Don't take our word for it! Look at the evidence yourself!

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By John Pope, The Times-Picayune, February 26, 2010

When the campaign for the District A seat on New Orleans' City Council began, the only candidate with any substantial amount of name recognition was Jay Batt, who held the post from 2002 to 2006.

But that didn't mean he was a shoo-in. Even though Batt, a Republican, has emphasized the importance of his experience, controversial votes he made while on the council, including his support for a new home for Bruno's bar on Maple Street and the expansion of Stuart Hall School for Boys, produced enough lingering anti-Batt sentiment to land him in second place the Feb. 6 primary, with 39 percent of the vote.

In the March 6 runoff, he will face off against the first-place finisher, Susan Guidry, a Democrat, lawyer and neighborhood activist who is making her first run for elective office. She led a four-candidate field with 44 percent, appealing to many voters in the notoriously fickle district by emphasizing the importance of change and working closely with neighborhoods.

By John Pope, The Times-Picayune, February 04, 2010

Jay Batt, who is campaigning to regain his District A seat on the City Council, has launched an attack on rival Susan Guidry based on the actions of one of her key supporters, City Councilwoman Shelley Midura.

Using what might be considered twisted logic, Batt concludes that Guidry is soft on crime because of her association with Midura, who ousted Batt from the seat four years ago and is not running for re-election.

Midura last month voted against a compromise city budget that sent about $6.4 million to the district attorney's office, an increase of nearly $700,000 from last year, because she said she didn't trust the Nagin administration's revenue projections. In an earlier version of the budget that assumed lower revenues, Midura had approved a $200,000 reduction for the DA, from $5.8 million to $5.6 million.

Guidry "has publicly stated her unwavering support for action of the sitting council member from District A," Batt said in a prepared statement. "By linking her platform to the incumbent's record, she has endorsed every action of her mentor."

Firing back, Guidry in a prepared statement called Batt's criticism of her false: "He's clearly trying to mislead the voters. How can voters trust anything he says?"

By Michelle Krupa, The Times-Picayune, February 10, 2010

Former District A Councilman Jay Batt has sought the seat four times since 2000, and he's landed in a runoff every time. So far, he's one for three, with a March 6 runoff on tap.

The Republican businessman entered his latest race as the favorite against three political newcomers. But after the votes were tallied Saturday night, lawyer Susan Guidry, a Democrat, led Batt 44 percent to 39 percent.