Atlanta City Council President Ceasar Mitchell on Tuesday declared that Mary Norwood, “at this moment in time, is the best person to lead this city.”

“This is not a decision I made lightly, as a black man,” Mitchell said. “Let’s be real about this. It’s not a decision I made lightly as a Democrat.”

Mayor Kasim Reed, who endorsed Norwood’s opponent, Keisha Lance Bottoms, said he’s “totally unsurprised” and that Norwood and Mitchel were “one man, one woman, two losers.”

Mitchell said he was troubled by rehtoric coming out of the mayor’s office, calling it wasdivisive and demeaning. He said it “would ultimately lead to the disintigration of our community.”

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Michael Parnow, a poll manager at Canton City Hall, assists voters at the Riverr-Green subdivision in Canton during the special election for the state senate seat in Cherokee on Tuesday, August 26,2025, to complete the term of former state Sen. Brandon Beach, which runs through January 2027.
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