GRETNA, La. (AP) - An 18-year-old high school student who signed up to run for Gretna mayor has been disqualified from the race.

The New Orleans Advocate (https://bit.ly/2jyLcXU ) reports William Boartfield Jr.’s ouster results from a lawsuit accusing him of not living in Gretna long enough to run.

State District Judge Raymond Steib disqualified him after a hearing Tuesday. That means Mayor Belinda Constant is automatically elected to a second four-year term.

Boartfield, a Green Party member and senior at the New Orleans Military & Maritime Academy, was the sole person to challenge Constant, a Democrat, during the recent qualifying period for the March 25 election.

Constant has been mayor since 2013. She declined comment, saying she preferred to see whether Boartfield would appeal. Boartfield said he wasn’t sure whether he would do so.

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Information from: The New Orleans Advocate, https://www.neworleansadvocate.com

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