Eight of the top candidates in the field to succeed Kasim Reed as mayor of Atlanta will take to the biggest stage yet on Sunday during a live debate held by WSB-TV and the Atlanta Police Foundation.
The debate, which will air on WSB-TV from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., will focus on the issues of public safety, education, the economy and transportation. It’ll be a chance for the top candidates to try to separate themselves from the field in a race that is almost certain to end up in a runoff between the top two finishers.
The debate will be moderated by Channel 2 Action News anchor Justin Farmer. Quizzing the candidates will be Channel 2 political reporter Richard Elliot, WSB Radio Manager of Programming Operations Condace Pressley and Atlanta Journal-Constitution political reporter Greg Bluestein.
AJC City Hall reporter Stephen Deere and business reporter Scott Trubey will be there to cover the action, and they’ll play the hosts for a pre-debate Facebook Live show that can be seen on the AJC Facebook page starting about 3:30 p.m. You also can follow along on Twitter with the hashtag #ATLMayor.
The eight candidates participating Sunday are: former Atlanta Chief Operating Officer Peter Aman, City Councilwoman Keisha Lance Bottoms, former Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves, former state Sen. Vincent Fort, Councilman Kwanza Hall, Council President Ceasar Mitchell, Councilwoman Mary Norwood and former Council President Cathy Woolard.
With Election Day coming Nov. 7, the WSB debate will be one of the most high-profile events for the voters to get to know the candidates.
Here are five key things you should watch for at Sunday’s debate:
1. Public Safety
At a Saturday forum at the Westside Future Fund, the major candidates fielded questions about their plans for public safety. For each, their ideas centered not only on ideas of improving policing and training to de-escalate confrontations, but also on programs to help keep children out of the criminal justice system. Watch for the candidates to be pressed on specifics on their respective plans and about matters such as pay and boosting morale for first responders.
2. Ethics and the bribery scandal
The federal corruption probe at Atlanta City Hall has emerged as one of the top issues of the race. Last month, the city's former top purchasing officer, Adam Smith, pleaded guilty to taking at least $30,000 in bribes. Two contractors so far have pleaded guilty to paying bribes and received prison sentences. Expect the candidates, particularly those with no connection to City Hall, to use the bribery scandal as a point of attack.
3. Jockeying for position
Speaking of attacks, this being the biggest platform for the candidates so far, there will likely be some fireworks Sunday. You can expect the field to step up their attacks on Norwood, who polls show as being in the lead, and Bottoms, who appears to have emerged in recent polls as the No. 2 contender. The race is very tight, however, with polls showing many voters as undecided. Watch for candidates in the crowded field to take shots at the others who they feel stand in the way of landing one of the two spots in the likely runoff.
4. The biggest figure not on the stage
That would be Reed, whose term ends in January. A number of the candidates have drawn stark lines between themselves and the outgoing mayor, and slammed City Hall for corruption. The mayor has denied any wrongdoing and pledged full cooperation with the federal probe. Reed remains as a force in the race. He endorsed Bottoms as his successor and he also hasn't been shy about attacking candidates that have tried to puncture his legacy.
5. Affordability and transportation
The candidates have all expressed plans to help tackle the needs for more affordable housing and fixes for traffic congestion. In many ways, their proposals hit similar notes. Expect the panel of journalists to push the candidates on how their proposals will help relieve both vexing problems, which rank among the top issues in the campaign.
How to watch
The debate will air live on Sunday from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on WSB-TV and will also be streamed at wsbtv.com, ajc.com, WSBRadio.com and the Facebook pages for all three. And remember, reporters Deere and Trubey will hold a Facebook Live pre-debate discussion about 3:30 p.m., and that will be carried on the AJC Facebook page.
Post debate
Want more? There will be full coverage of the debate at ajc.com and Politically Georgia, the premium politics page powered by the AJC.
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