ATLANTA – Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said she had been thinking about not running for reelection as early as her first year in office, though she couldn’t point to a specific moment or reason that led her to bow out of the race.
In her first public appearance since announcing her decision to supporters Thursday night, Bottoms said her decision was guided by faith.
“In the same way that it was very clear to me almost five years ago that I should run for mayor of Atlanta, it is abundantly clear to me today that it is time to pass the baton on to someone else,” Bottoms said at an emotional news conference at City Hall.
Bottoms said she doesn’t know what’s next for her; she denied rumors that she or her husband, Derek, have taken jobs for Walgreens out of state.
“I can’t get Derek to move two miles off Cascade Road,” she said.
Bottoms, who was seen as a strong incumbent candidate despite a spike in violent crime, told friends and supporters Thursday evening she won’t seek a second term. She released a video and statement online a few hours later elaborating on her decision and reflecting on her time in office.
“This is not something I woke up and decided yesterday,” Bottoms said Friday. “This is something I’ve been thinking about for a very long time.”
The move is a shocking reversal for Bottoms, a mayor with a rising national profile who had launched her reelection campaign and held a fundraising event featuring President Joe Biden. The decision creates a wide-open mayor’s race this year, and is likely to open the door for a slew of new candidates.
Bottoms said she does not have a chosen successor, but may weigh in on the race later this year.
City Council President Felicia Moore and Dentons attorney Sharon Gay launched campaigns for mayor earlier this year, and Councilman Antonio Brown could also run.
Bottoms, who served on the City Council for eight years, was elected in 2017 in a razor-thin runoff against Mary Norwood.
