Brad Pitt has joked about a quasi-campaign calling for him to run for mayor of New Orleans, saying he would not “have a chance”.

Local residents have been sporting 'Brad Pitt For Mayor' t-shirts since mid-June after a t-shirt shop launched the effort to try and convince the actor to stand.

Pitt has had close ties with New Orleans since he established the Make It Right organisation two years ago in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

But during an appearance on the Today show yesterday, he said: “I don't have a chance”.

"I'm running on the gay marriage, no religion, legalization and taxation of marijuana platform,” he joked.

If Pitt was to make a U-turn and stand as mayor then he would need to reside in the city for at least five years before an election.

The actor only bought a house in the city's French Quater two years ago. The next mayoral poll is in February 2010.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie rock Inglorious Basterds premiere