ATLANTA — Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms will face what she calls “robust” opposition in her re-election race this year. City Council President Felicia Moore announced her candidacy on Thursday, citing government ethics and the city’s uptick in violent crime.
It will be the first hotly-contested mayoral election campaign Atlanta has seen since 1997.
When Georgia House Speaker David Ralston introduced Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms on Wednesday as a special guest in the House Chamber, the Republican Speaker described the city's Democratic Mayor as "one of the state’s great leaders" and "a real visionary individual."
But Bottoms' profile – both at the Georgia State Capitol and with the new Biden administration in Washington – may not help much with Atlanta voters who have seen story after story about rising violent crime rates in the city.
Moore made her candidacy for mayor official during a virtual event Thursday morning.
During an interview afterward, Moore told 11Alive News that Atlanta residents don’t want more of the same.
"Citizens want to see things get done -- and they want to see them get done differently," Moore said. "Of course everyone is discussing the ... crime in this city."
During our interview, Moore declined to specifically criticize Mayor Bottoms’ policies and said she had no dispute with the mayor's ethics.
"This is not about being against anyone," Moore said. "It's about the issues we're facing in our city."
Yet, the crime issue may give Moore the traction that challengers to sitting mayors often struggle to get. Data shows that homicides and aggravated assaults have spiked in Atlanta, especially in the last year.
"It’s going to be tough. It’s going to be a war," said political analyst Maynard Eaton, who predicted that Moore won’t play nice for very long.
"Her timing is interesting, and I think Felicia Moore may have more strength, more clout, (be) more competitive than we realize," Eaton said.
He also predicted that Bottoms will raise more campaign money
After the mayor left the House chamber on Wednesday, 11Alive News asked Bottoms about the challenge.
"Every campaign is spirited. It’s an election year and we know that people will be paying attention," Bottoms said. "So, no matter who the opponent is, I’m expecting it’s going to be a very robust campaign year."