ATLANTA, GA — Andre Dickens, a member of Atlanta’s City Council, won a runoff election Tuesday to become the city’s next mayor, riding a wave of support that propelled him over Felicia Moore, the council’s current president, after finishing second to her in November.
Dickens won a race dominated by concerns about rising violent crime in the city, arguing that he would be more effective than Moore, who had spent her 20 years on the City Council as a sometimes-lonely critic of past mayors. Moore had been the clear favorite among 14 candidates in a nonpartisan election in the first round of voting on Nov. 2.
Dickens, a 47-year-old Atlanta native and trained engineer, joined the council in 2013. He said that his diverse background will enable him to solve crime and other city issues like as affordable housing and expanding opportunities for low-income individuals. Other campaign topics included improving the city’s ailing services and preventing the rich Buckhead neighborhood from seceding.
Dickens came from behind to finish second and qualify for the runoff on Nov. 2, ending the comeback attempt of two-term former Mayor Kasim Reed, who finished third. Bottoms, U.S. Rep. and Democratic Party of Georgia Chair Nikema Williams, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, and Sharon Gay, an attorney who finished fourth in the Nov. 2 election, all endorsed her in the runoff.
“I draw circles, I don’t draw lines,” Dickens said. “And the circle tonight got real large.”
Dickens has promised to increase the number of police officers on the street, arrest gang leaders, and institute community policing. He said he might maintain current Police Chief Rodney Bryant, who came out of retirement in 2020 after a former chief stepped down in the aftermath of a fatal police shooting of a Black man, which sparked rioting.
Dickens also wants to enhance infrastructure, provide affordable housing, and ensure that present people are qualified for high-paying jobs. Tuesday night, he recognized the city’s challenges before pivoting to optimism about the city’s ability to transform.