Atlanta - Keisha Lance Bottoms, the first-term Atlanta mayor who rose to national prominence this past year with her stern yet empathetic televised message to protesters but has struggled to rein in her city spike in violent crime, will not seek a second term in office , Ms. Bottoms announced on Twitter on Thursday night.As Derek and I have given thoughtful prayer and consideration to the season now before us,” Ms.Bottoms wrote in an online letter, referring to her husband, Derek Bottoms, “it is with deep emotions that I now hold my head high, and choose not to seek another term as mayor.”
The news shocked the political world in Atlanta, the most important city in the Southeast and one where the mayoral seat has been filled by African-American leaders since 1974, burnishing its reputation as a mecca for Black culture and political power. At an emotional news conference Friday at City Hall, Ms. Bottoms did not give a specific reason for not running again, but rattled off a litany of crises she has faced, including a crippling cyberattack at City Hall; a federal corruption investigation that began under her predecessor, Kasim Reed; a pandemic; a social justice movement in response to the police killings of Black people; and former President Donald J. Trump, whom she described as “a madman in the White House.It is abundantly clear to me today that it is time to pass the baton on to someone else,she said.
The year 2020 unquestionably took a toll on mayors nationwide. It was one of the most tumultuous years for American cities since the 1960s, with the social and economic disruptions of the coronavirus pandemic as well as racial justice that sometimes turned destructive.
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