Friday is the last day to vote early in Nov. 4 elections in Atlanta
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
"I'm a Georgia voter" stickers are seen as citizens cast their votes for presidential and congressional elections in Atlanta last year. Photo: Courtesy of Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images
You only have two more days to vote early in Nov. 4 elections across metro Atlanta and Georgia.
Why it matters: Voters will choose who will become the next mayor in Atlanta and other metro cities, as well as which two candidates will serve on the Public Service Commission, and if a new property tax break should be extended to senior citizens.
Driving the news: Early voting wraps up Friday at 6pm at several sites across Fulton County.
By the numbers: As of Wednesday, 65,899 people have voted early in Fulton County, followed by 32,948 in DeKalb, 27,286 in Gwinnett, 24,023 in Cobb and 9,461 in Clayton counties, according to the Georgia Secretary of State Election Data Hub.
Atlanta
Mayor Andre Dickens will likely continue the trend of incumbent mayors winning re-election, so all the attention is on the race for City Council president.
- Council member Marci Collier Overstreet is running against civic nonprofit founder Rohit Malhotra to replace Doug Shipman, who is not seeking re-election to a second term.
- Despite the lofty title, council presidents have limited power and three main duties: presiding over full body meetings, appointing Council committee members and casting the tie-breaking vote.
State of play: The race has turned nasty, with candidates and their supporters trading jabs over public safety and debates about which candidate is an outsider (or insider).
- Last month, a coalition of groups supporting Malhotra criticized a now-offline website that referred to him as an "extreme candidate," labeling the attacks racist and xenophobic.
- Last week, a mailer distributed listed side-by-side comparisons of both candidates, noting that Overstreet was a "wife and mother to three kids" and characterizing Malhotra as a "bachelor."
- Another mailer claimed Overstreet "would let corruption bulldoze" the city and that she ignored the Office of Inspector General's "claims that officials had interfered with her investigations."
All City Council seats are up for re-election.
Public Service Commission
After being delayed since 2022 after a federal judge ruled the commission's at-large elections violated the Voting Rights Act, two seats on the entity that regulates utilities like Georgia Power are on the ballot.
- District 2 (east): Democrat Alicia Johnson faces incumbent Republican commissioner Tim Echols.
- District 3 (metro Atlanta): Peter Hubbard, another Democratic candidate, is challenging incumbent Republican Fitz Johnson, who was appointed to the post by Gov. Brian Kemp in 2021.
Senior homestead exemption
Atlanta and Fulton County voters will also consider granting additional homestead exemptions from school property taxes to homeowners age 65 and older, no matter their income.
- Atlanta Civic Circle has a great explainer on the ballot questions.
The fine print: Candidates are also running for the Atlanta Board of Education.
- Several cities around metro Atlanta will also hold elections, including electing mayors in Marietta, Sandy Springs, Chattahoochee Hills, Roswell and Johns Creek.