Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms made an unexpected decision late Thursday, announcing that she will not seek a second term.
Bottoms relayed the bombshell news in a video statement and letter entitled “Dear Atlanta.” She chronicled the hurdles and the triumphs of her administration through her first three-plus years at the city’s helm. Before releasing the statement, Bottoms told supporters and loved ones of her decision in a private phone call.
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announces she will not seek a second term. Photo: MSNBC/ YouTube
“As Derek and I have given thoughtful prayer and consideration to the season now before us, it is with deep emotions that I hold my head high, and choose not to seek another term as Mayor,” Bottoms said.
In surprise, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms won t seek a second term: Leadership sometimes is about passing off the baton
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Former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed talks crime, Buckhead breakaway
Reed is back in the spotlight amid speculation he could run for a return to the mayor s office. Author: Aprylete Russell Updated: 9:27 AM EDT May 7, 2021
ATLANTA Former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed had a lot to say about what the city is seeing when it comes to crime, and how to turn things around.
The two-term mayor called it a crime crisis - not a COVID crisis - saying it goes beyond the pandemic.
Reed is back in the spotlight, with speculation rising that he could try to make a run to return to the mayor s office even before incumbent Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced she wouldn t run for re-election on Thursday night.
In a letter, Bottoms outlined some of the successes of her administration over the last four years, including raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, handling a cyber attack, and creating an affordable housing trust fund.
During Bottom’s term, the city saw numerous protests and riots in the wake of the George Floyd shooting and a 58% rise in homicides in 2020. Bottoms also faced a serious challenger in Felicia Moore, the president of Atlanta’s city council, former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and 2014 Gubernatorial candidate Jason Carter, according to Fox News.
Bottoms says she is not stepping down because of her reelection prospects, according to FOX News. In her letter, she says that she had the single most successful fundraiser of any Mayor in Atlanta and that polls show that she would win the election.
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