TL;DR — The Short Version
Saturday’s New Orleans election was a women’s election. Stephanie Bridges upset the political machine. Sheryl Howard dominated a sitting judge by 27 points. Chelsey Richard Napoleon ran her first election without a hitch. Black women voted in force — because they understand better than anyone that political engagement is not optional. It is survival. And this week, Denise Tureaud explains why that power is no accident and how every Black woman can claim it.
Key Points
- Stephanie Bridges defeated machine-backed Richard Perque by 634 votes. Sheryl Howard crushed sitting judge Elroy James 64% to 36%. Both women won on Saturday in Orleans Parish Civil District Court races.
- Chelsey Richard Napoleon successfully administered her first election as Civil District Court Clerk — steady, professional, and unbothered amid the political chaos surrounding her office.
- Black women voted in large numbers on Saturday, driving turnout in a low-profile election that the political establishment expected to control. They did not.
- Michelle Woodfork was sworn in as Orleans Parish Sheriff earlier this month — the second Black woman ever elected sheriff in Louisiana. The women’s wave didn’t start Saturday. It has been building.
- Political engagement is not a burden Black women carry. It is a power they wield — and Saturday proved that when Black women show up with intention, the machine loses.
- Protecting your civic health — staying engaged, staying informed, and staying grounded — is an act of self-care, not just civic duty. Denise explains why the two are the same thing.
Black Women Ran New Orleans on Election Night — And It Wasn’t a Surprise
By Denise Tureaud | Black Source Media | Wednesday Wellness
I want you to sit with what happened in New Orleans on Saturday night.
Not the political headlines. Not the vote totals. The actual story underneath — the one Black women in this city felt in their bones when the results came in.
Women ran this election. Black women, specifically. And they did it the way Black women do most things — quietly, completely, and without asking for permission.
What Saturday Actually Looked Like
Stephanie Bridges defeated Richard Perque for Civil District Court Division M. Perque had the mayor, the DA, and six of seven city councilmembers. He outspent her nearly four to one. Bridges had her community and her story. She won.
Then there is Sheryl Howard. She did not just win her race for Division N — she defeated a sitting judge by 27 points. Elroy James held a seat on First City Court. He had the title, the robe, and the institutional credibility. Howard walked in and ended it. Sixty-four percent to thirty-six. That is not a win. That is a statement.
And then there is Chelsey Richard Napoleon — caught between a state legislature that erased Calvin Duncan’s elected office and a city council fighting back in court. Napoleon didn’t create that chaos. Baton Rouge did. She administered an election in the middle of it and ran it without a hitch. Professional, steady, and focused — while powerful men fought over her office from a distance.
Add Michelle Woodfork — elected Orleans Parish Sheriff last fall and sworn in earlier this month, the second Black woman ever elected sheriff in Louisiana — and the full picture comes into focus. This is not a coincidence. This is a movement.
Why Black Women Showed Up
Black women did not vote in large numbers Saturday because someone told them to. They voted because they understand something too many people learn too late: political engagement is not optional. It is survival.
They watched Baton Rouge spend the last year erasing elected offices, manipulating congressional maps, and gutting judgeships in a majority-Black city. They watched powerful men treat the votes of their community like an inconvenience. Those memories stayed. On Saturday they responded.
When Black women are truly motivated — moved by something personal, not just encouraged — they change outcomes. They always have. Saturday was the latest proof.
“When Black women show up with intention, the machine loses. Saturday was proof.”
Political Engagement Is Self-Care
Here is what I want to say to every Black woman reading this — especially the ones who are tired, who wonder why they keep showing up when the system keeps pushing back.
What you did Saturday was an act of self-care. Not as a metaphor. As a literal truth.
The courts Bridges and Howard will now sit on handle evictions, custody disputes, property rights, and family law — cases that determine whether a family stays in their home, whether a child stays with their parent. The women who voted Saturday will feel those results in their daily lives for years. That is what political engagement actually is. Not a civic lesson. Direct self-preservation.
We have talked in this column about protecting your peace during political turmoil. But peace is not only about stepping back when things get heavy. Sometimes it means stepping forward. Peace is not passive. It is the result of building a city where you and your family are safe, seen, and protected. Saturday, Black women built that.
The Wellness of Knowing Your Power
Research on Black mental wellbeing shows that civic engagement and political activism are genuine sources of psychological strength. Knowing you acted. Knowing your voice was counted. Knowing you did not sit out while decisions were made without you. That knowledge is protective. It reduces the helplessness that political trauma creates.
Fannie Lou Hamer knew this. Septima Clark knew it. Dorothy Height knew it. Saturday’s voters are their direct descendants.
So celebrate what happened. The fight is not over — the assault on Black political power in Louisiana did not end Saturday night. But you exercised a power that generations of women before you were denied, and you used it with purpose.
That is wellness. That is strength. That is exactly what this column is about.
Sources & References
- WWLTV — Orleans Parish Civil and Criminal Court election results, May 16, 2026
- NOLA.com — Bridges and Howard prevail in New Orleans civil judge races, May 16, 2026
- The Mental Health Coalition — Black Mental Health Roadmap, 2026
- Wikipedia — Michelle Woodfork, Orleans Parish Sheriff-elect
- Black Source Media — People Power Wins: Bridges Upsets the Machine, May 17, 2026
Denise Tureaud
Denise Tureaud is a wellness advocate, community voice, and contributing writer at Black Source Media (blacksourcemedia.com). Every Wednesday she writes about health, healing, self-improvement, and the tools Black communities need to thrive — not just survive. She is based in New Orleans.
Denise Tureaud
Health Writer • Wellness Advocate • New Orleans Community Voice • Wednesday Columnist
Denise Tureaud is Black Source Media’s Wednesday health and wellness columnist, writing for and about the Black women, men, and families of New Orleans with the directness and specificity that community deserves. She does not traffic in generic wellness advice. She writes about the real conditions — financial stress, insurance discrimination, systemic health disparities — that shape Black health outcomes in Louisiana and across America.
Her Wednesday series covers the intersection of personal health and systemic reality. She translates peer-reviewed research into actionable, plain-language guidance for readers who have been underserved by both the healthcare system and the health media that claims to speak for them. Her work on financial stress and cardiovascular disease brought new NIH-backed research directly to Black Source Media readers months before it reached mainstream health publications.
Tureaud writes with the voice of a New Orleans Black woman who has seen too many people she loves suffer from conditions that were preventable — and who believes that information, delivered honestly and directly, is one of the most powerful health interventions available.
Selected Articles by Denise Tureaud
Your Bills Are Breaking Your Heart. Literally.
Black Men Health Disparities: Why We Die Younger and What We Can Do About It (Strong Enough to Live Series)
View All Articles by Denise Tureaud at Black Source Media
Health & Wellness Columnist — Black Source Media
Denise Tureaud
Health Writer • Wellness Advocate • New Orleans Community Voice • Wednesday Columnist
Denise Tureaud is Black Source Media’s Wednesday health and wellness columnist, writing for and about the Black women, men, and families of New Orleans with the directness and specificity that community deserves. She does not traffic in generic wellness advice. She writes about the real conditions — financial stress, insurance discrimination, systemic health disparities — that shape Black health outcomes in Louisiana and across America.
Her Wednesday series covers the intersection of personal health and systemic reality. She translates peer-reviewed research into actionable, plain-language guidance for readers who have been underserved by both the healthcare system and the health media that claims to speak for them. Her work on financial stress and cardiovascular disease brought new NIH-backed research directly to Black Source Media readers months before it reached mainstream health publications.
Tureaud writes with the voice of a New Orleans Black woman who has seen too many people she loves suffer from conditions that were preventable — and who believes that information, delivered honestly and directly, is one of the most powerful health interventions available.
Selected Articles by Denise Tureaud
Your Bills Are Breaking Your Heart. Literally.
Black Men Health Disparities: Why We Die Younger and What We Can Do About It (Strong Enough to Live Series)
View All Articles by Denise Tureaud at Black Source Media