Paving a Path in Politics: Insights from Three of Atlanta’s 2017 Mayoral Candidates presented by ACG Atlanta Women's Forum and OnBoard

Keisha Lance Bottoms is a compassionate leader and committed public servant.  For nearly eight years, Keisha has represented a large portion of the historic Southwest Atlanta community as a member of the Atlanta City Council. During her service on Council, Keisha has sponsored groundbreaking legislation that has addressed the City’s $1.5 billion unfunded pension liability and helped grow the City’s reserves from $7.4 million to nearly $150 million, in just over five years. She has also authored the toughest Panhandling legislation in the history of Atlanta, which combines empathy with enforcement, and has resulted in offenders receiving often needed social services to help break the cycle of recidivism.

Keisha has worked with colleagues to achieve the goal of 2,000 officers within the Atlanta Police Department and to successfully balance the City’s budget each year, without increasing taxes. She has served as Vice-Chair of the Public Safety Committee and as Chair of the Council’s Zoning Committee. During her term as Vice-Chair of the City’s Transportation Committee, the Maynard H. Jackson International terminal at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport opened, solidifying Hartsfield-Jackson’s place as the busiest airport in the world. Keisha also launched Invest in Southwest, a 360-degree urban planning initiative with the goal of revitalizing and expanding economic development within underserved communities.

Keisha has also served as Executive Director of The City of Atlanta and Fulton County Recreation Authority (AFCRA), where she fostered community engagement, worked alongside corporate partners, and negotiated and managed government relations and public finance. As chief executive officer of AFCRA, Keisha spearheaded the sale and $350M planned redevelopment transition of Turner Field (former home of the Atlanta Braves). Keisha has also lead a team in redeveloping iconic entertainment venues across Atlanta, including Philips Arena (home of the Atlanta Hawks) and the world-renowned Zoo Atlanta. AFCRA also operates portions of John A. White Park, where the junior golf program, The First Tee, is hosted.  Alongside her public service career, Keisha has maintained a private law practice for more than 20 years and has served as General Counsel for a multi-million dollar business, as well as a Judge (Pro Hoc) in Fulton County State Court. She has also worked as a legal analyst and reporter for various media outlets.

Keisha’s commitment to community and public service has been recognized by the YWCA Academy of Women Achievers. Keisha has also been deemed a Woman of Style & Substance on behalf of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA).  The Atlanta Business Chronicle has named Keisha as a Who’s Who in Sports Business. She is a member of the prestigious Leadership Atlanta Class of 2013 and was honored in 1997 as one of 10 Outstanding Young Atlantans based upon her professional achievements and dedicated community service.

Keisha has volunteered with numerous community organizations and has served on the boards of The Children’s School, the Firefighters’ Pension Fund, Atlanta Mayoral Board of Service, the Andrew and Walter Young YMCA, Central Atlanta Progress, YWCA of Atlanta, CURE for Childhood Cancer, the Atlanta Cyclorama Task Force, and Ben Hill United Methodist Church. She also serves on the Board of Families First, where she shares her personal story of adoption and advocates on behalf of adoption and foster care. Keisha has also served consecutive terms as gala chair for the National Black Arts Festival, which raises more than a half-million dollars annually in support of the country’s oldest multidisciplinary arts organization focused exclusively on the arts and on artists of African descent.

Keisha is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, the Atlanta Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, the Dogwood City Chapter of The Links, Inc., the Atlanta Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., and is a member of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights – Women’s Solidarity Society.

She is a graduate of Florida A&M University, Magna Cum Laude, and Georgia State University College of Law.  Keisha is the daughter of the late American R&B singer Major Lance and Sylvia Robinson. She and her husband, Derek W. Bottoms, have the privilege of being the parents of four wonderful children.

Mary Norwood transforms ideas into action. She brings 30+ years of leadership and success in the media business, community organizations and politics to create innovative solutions for Atlanta’s most critical issues.  Her top mayoral priority is government transparency: a forensic audit of all funds; rebuild the budget from the ground up; post all checks online and overhaul the contract bid process.  An independent voice, Norwood will significantly improve how responsive and accountable Atlanta government is to businesses, neighborhoods and all citizens.

Norwood's business background is extensive.  She was chief operating officer for a radio company, successfully operating and marketing stations throughout the southeast; founder of a computer telephony company; president of a national business organization, and the principal broker of a Georgia-based real estate firm.

Equally impressive, her civic career spans more than two decades, first as a community advocate, then as an at-large city councilwoman for the City of Atlanta. She served from 2002-2009 and was re-elected to City Council for 2014-2018. Norwood’s reputation as a “get it done” official is legend: citizens across the city have supported her in every race she’s run. In the 2001 election for Atlanta City Council citywide, she received more votes than any candidate in the State of Georgia.  For re-election in 2005, she received the most votes of any member of the Atlanta City Council.  She ran for Mayor in 2009 and received 49.6% of the votes cast. In 2013, she ran for Atlanta City Council citywide and won with 52.77% of the votes cast.  

Norwood’s breadth of knowledge and solutions-based approach enable her to impact numerous issues. She helped establish citizen involvement programs in the Fulton County Court System: Community Restorative Boards at Juvenile Court and Court Watch at Superior Court.  Her Infill Legislation, designed to ensure scale and sustainability in neighborhoods, received national media attention and a State of Georgia Planning Award.  She worked with the City's Housing Department to initiate a "Home Atlanta Program", offering down payment assistance and low interest mortgages; and engaged major companies to create public-private strategies to market the livability of all Atlanta communities. She is a strong advocate for work opportunities for Atlanta’s homeless and underemployed and has raised over $500,000 in public and private funds.  Throughout her years on Council, Mary Norwood has been a tireless advocate for fiscal accountability and transparency in city government.  

She is a graduate of Emory University and is married to Dr. Felton Norwood, a retired pediatrician.  They live in Tuxedo Park.  

As President of the Atlanta City Council, the first woman to hold that position, Cathy championed the Atlanta BeltLine, a project transforming abandoned rail-­‐‑corridors circling the city into mixed-­‐‑use recreational trails. She founded the "Dirty Dozen," a pilot program to fix the worst code violations in the city to improve neglected neighborhoods. She also made sustainability a priority, and her Energy Conservation Program cut emissions while saving the city's facilities more than $470,000. As a City Council member for District 6, she increased funding for sidewalks and, as Chair of the Transportation Committee, she oversaw the expansion of Hartsfield-­‐‑Jackson International Airport, which had just become the busiest airport in the world.

Cathy also personally led the Atlanta City Council to pass what is still the only comprehensive civil rights bill in the state of Georgia, protecting all Atlanta residents and visitors from discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations.

Cathy's dad was a career Air Force Officer and while at least 7 generations of her family have lived in Atlanta, Cathy grew up on bases all over the world. She was educated in public schools, graduated from the University of Georgia and settled with her family here in Atlanta. She and her partner of 28 years, Karen Geney, live in Glenwood Park.

As a small business owner and non-­‐‑profit organization executive, Cathy has continued to serve others with organizations like CARE, League of Conservation Voters, and the Human Rights Campaign. Cathy is dedicated to Atlanta, committed to honesty and transparency, and diligent in making sure jobs are done right the first time.