NEW ORLEANS — The 17th annual NOPD Citizen Satisfaction Survey commissioned by the New Orleans Crime Coalition found public satisfaction with the New Orleans Police Department is at 55 percent, an eight-point increase since June 2025. The survey also showed satisfaction has climbed 24 percentage points since Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick took office in 2023, rising from 31 percent to 55 percent.
“Seeing public satisfaction with the NOPD rise for a third straight year is a sign that reforms and renewed leadership are making an impact,” said Mike Cowan, chairman of the New Orleans Crime Coalition. “Residents are beginning to feel safer, and confidence is returning. This survey gives the city a clear roadmap for where progress is happening and where more work is needed to build trust across every neighborhood and every generation.”
The findings are based on live telephone interviews conducted Jan. 26–31 by Faucheux Strategies, LLC. The poll surveyed a representative sample of 800 New Orleans adults ages 18 and older and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.46 percentage points.
Unlike prior years, when the survey was conducted in late May or early June, the 2026 edition was timed to provide baseline data for the new city administration which took office Jan. 12.
NOPD Satisfaction Survey – Key Findings
The NOPD’s overall satisfaction rating now stands at 55%, an increase of eight points compared with the June 2025 survey. Over the same period, negative ratings declined sharply, falling 15 points from 38% to 23%. Satisfaction levels are relatively consistent across racial groups, with 53% of Black residents and 59% of White residents saying they are satisfied with the job the NOPD is doing.
Perceptions of public safety also improved. Nearly two-thirds of residents, or 66%, said they believe the city is safe, a 12-point increase from the previous survey. Among respondents, 64% of Black residents and 67% of White residents reported feeling that the city is safe. Residents expressed even stronger confidence in their own neighborhoods, with 87% saying their neighborhood is safe, compared with 66% who said the same about the city overall.
Willingness to cooperate with law enforcement remains high, with 87% of residents saying they would contact Crimestoppers, up four percentage points from the last survey.
Support for crime-reduction strategies was broad, with strong majorities—ranging from 67% to 94%—backing measures such as improving police capacity to solve and investigate crimes, increasing neighborhood patrol manpower, expanding social and counseling programs, and making greater use of computer analytics, camera technology and facial recognition tools. Support for facial recognition specifically stood at 67%, including 72% of Black residents and 60% of White residents, while 79% of residents supported expanding the NOPD’s legal use of camera technology to help solve crimes.
Despite these gains, task-level ratings for the department remain low, ranging from 12% to 33%, though they showed slight improvement. Retention and recruitment of police officers were the lowest-rated areas, with positive ratings of just 11% and 12%, respectively.
“While most residents believe the NOPD is doing an increasingly good job given the circumstances, they see room for improving specific tasks they perform – and much of that improvement will require additional manpower and better use of technology,” said Ron Faucheux, the pollster who conducted the survey.
The New Orleans Crime Coalition is a group of organizations—including the Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region, Crimestoppers, the Metropolitan Crime Commission, the New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation and the NOLA Coalition—committed to addressing crime, improving public safety and strengthening civic engagement.
The Survey – Details
The New Orleans Crime Coalition has conducted independent surveys of residents’ views on the New Orleans Police Department since 2009, using the results to identify areas for improvement and track changes in public trust and public safety.
The 2026 NOPD Citizen Satisfaction Survey was funded by The Greater New Orleans Foundation, GNO Inc., and the Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region.
The survey was conducted by trained telephone interviewers under the supervision of Dr. Ron Faucheux. The independent, nonpartisan polling firm is based in New Orleans and has no affiliation with the City of New Orleans or the New Orleans Police Department.
Part II of the survey includes additional results on civic priorities and policymakers. It will be published on Feb. 5 on the New Orleans Crime Coalition website at www.neworleanscrimecoalition.org
