Voters re-elected Andre Dickens as the mayor of Atlanta on Nov. 4 with 87,351 votes (85%), with 99% of the vote counted, according to the Associated Press. He defeated Eddie Meredith (6.1%), Kalema Jackson (5.1%) and Helmut Domagalski (3.8%). Dickens was first elected to the position after former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms declined to run for a second term in 2021. He won in a runoff race against Felicia Moore, with Dickens taking 63.4% of the vote compared to Moore’s 36.6%.
Dickens’ campaign focused on “expanding opportunities, equity, and prosperity for all residents.” In a second term, he hopes to create initiatives to improve public safety and community support while bolstering his signature Atlanta Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative, designed to allocate city resources to underserved neighborhoods.
During his first term, Dickens attempted to repair the strained relationship between city and state officials. Since the beginning of Dickens’ first term in office, Atlanta’s overall crime rates have decreased by 9%. Still, housing prices have increased drastically, and water main breaks in the last year exposed some of the city’s weak infrastructure.
In a close race, Atlanta Councilmember Marci Overstreet (51%) defeated Center for Civic Innovation Founder and Executive Director Rohit Malhotra (49%) for the Atlanta City Council presidency by a margin of 2,772 votes. Overstreet has represented District 11, containing portions of Southwest Atlanta, since 2018.
During her tenure as a councilmember, Overstreet introduced legislation to alleviate food insecurity and advocated for affordable housing developments.
Jack Rutherford (he/him) (27C) is a managing editor at The Emory Wheel. He is from Louisville, Ky., majoring in economics on the pre-law track. When not working for the Wheel, he can normally be found rowing with Emory Crew, where he serves as president, or at an Atlanta Opera performance. In his free time, Rutherford enjoys listening to music and walking in Lullwater.
