(CNN) – Ray Nagin, the former mayor of New Orleans who was both praised and criticized for his leadership during Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, told CNN Friday night that he will not seek public office again.
“I have kind of given my pound of flesh, my pint of blood,” Nagin said on John King USA. “Katrina has definitely extended my political life a lot quicker than I’d like.”
Nagin was first elected mayor in 2002 and squeaked out re-election with a 4-point victory over Louisiana Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu in 2006, after Katrina. Due to term limits, Nagin could not seek a third term and stepped down from office in May.
He drew heavy criticism when, in a 2006 speech on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, he urged residents to rebuild a “chocolate New Orleans” and said, “You can’t have New Orleans no other way.”
