Atlanta mayoral election, 1981

Last updated

The 1981 Atlanta Mayoral Election took place on October 6, 1981, with the runoff held on October 27. Mayor Maynard Jackson was ineligible to run due to term limits. The runoff featured two prominent Atlanta politicians: former Congressman and UN Ambassador Andrew Young as well as State Representative Sidney Marcus. Young won in the October 27th runoff by double digits. It became the first time an African American mayor (Jackson) handed over the keys of a major city to another African American. [1]

Maynard Holbrook Jackson Jr. was an American politician and attorney from Georgia, a member of the Democratic Party, and elected in 1973 at the age of 35 as the first black mayor of Atlanta, Georgia and of any major city in the South. He served three terms, making him the second longest-serving mayor of Atlanta, after six-term mayor William B. Hartsfield.

Andrew Young American politician, diplomat, activist and pastor from Georgia

Andrew Jackson Young Jr. is an American politician, diplomat, and activist. Beginning his career as a pastor, Young was an early leader in the civil rights movement, serving as executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and a close confidant to Martin Luther King Jr. Young later became active in politics, serving first as a U.S. Congressman from Georgia, then United States Ambassador to the United Nations, and finally Mayor of Atlanta. Since leaving political office, Young has founded or served in a large number of organizations working on issues of public policy and political lobbying.

Sidney J. Marcus was a Georgia (U.S.) legislator from Atlanta's 26th district, now the 106th district, who served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 1968 until his death in 1983. He served on several committees: Health and Ecology, on which he was chairman; Ways and Means; and Rules. For several years, Marcus was chairman of Fulton County delegation. He was also an unsuccessful candidate for Mayor of Atlanta in 1981, defeated by Andrew Young. He was a noted Atlanta politician, and active in the Jewish community. His accomplishments included helping to stop the I-485 freeway which threatened several intown neighborhoods. Sidney Marcus attended Atlanta public schools and graduated from the University of Georgia in 1948, as a member of Zeta Beta Tau fraternity. He was a 1955 graduate of the Emory University School of Law. Marcus married Charlotte Glyck of Waycross, GA, and they had three children, Robyn, Bradley and Beth.

Election results

CandidateGeneral ElectionRunoff
Votes%Votes%
Andrew Young 44,80840.965,79855.1
Sidney Marcus 42,59338.853,54944.8
A. Reginald Eaves 17,45715.9
Warren Shulman 3,6023.2
John E. Thompson 6180.5
Mildred Glover 2750.2
Andree Kahlmorgan 1510.1
Blank/Overvotes 7,607–3,080–
Total117,111100122,427100
Registered voters/turnout191,16661.26191,16664.04
Source: Fulton County Board of Elections

Related Research Articles

History of Atlanta

The history of Atlanta dates back to 1836, when Georgia decided to build a railroad to the U.S. Midwest and a location was chosen to be the line's terminus. The stake marking the founding of "Terminus" was driven into the ground in 1837. In 1839, homes and a store were built there and the settlement grew. Between 1845 and 1854, rail lines arrived from four different directions, and the rapidly growing town quickly became the rail hub for the entire Southern United States. During the American Civil War, Atlanta, as a distribution hub, became the target of a major Union campaign, and in 1864, Union William Sherman's troops set on fire and destroyed the city's assets and buildings, save churches and hospitals. After the war, the population grew rapidly, as did manufacturing, while the city retained its role as a rail hub. Coca-Cola was launched here in 1886 and grew into an Atlanta-based world empire. Electric streetcars arrived in 1889, and the city added new "streetcar suburbs".

Shirley Franklin American mayor

Shirley Clarke Franklin is an American politician, a member of the Democratic Party who served as the 58th mayor of Atlanta, Georgia, from 2002 to 2010. She currently serves as a member on the board of directors for both Delta Air Lines and Mueller Water Products.

Harvey Johnson Jr. American politician

Harvey Johnson Jr., is an American politician from Mississippi. He was elected in 1997 as the first African American Mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, serving two terms. He was known for his achievements in gaining reinvestment in the city to revitalize downtown.

Samuel A. Massell Jr. is a businessman who served from 1970 to 1974 as the 53rd mayor of Atlanta, Georgia. He is the first Jewish mayor in the city's history, and as of 2018, the most recent white Mayor of Atlanta.

Kasim Reed American politician, mayor of Atlanta, Georgia

Mohammed Kasim Reed is an American attorney and former politician who was the 59th mayor of Atlanta, Georgia's state capital and largest city, from 2010 to 2018.

A municipal election in the City of Atlanta was held on Tuesday, November 3, 2009. Atlanta is the capital of the state of Georgia and is the largest city in Georgia and is the center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the South.

Mary Norwood American politician

Mary Norwood is an American businesswoman and politician who is a former member of the Atlanta City Council. A political independent, she was a candidate for mayor of Atlanta in 2009 and 2017. In both campaigns she advanced to the runoff, but respectively lost to Kasim Reed and Keisha Lance Bottoms by narrow margins. In addition to her mayoral runs, she represented city-wide posts on the Atlanta City Council from 2002 to 2010 and again from 2014 to 2018. She resides in the Tuxedo Park neighborhood of Atlanta's Buckhead community.

The 1973 Atlanta mayoral election was held on October 16, 1973 in Atlanta, Georgia. Vice Mayor Maynard Jackson was elected as the city's first African-American mayor, defeating incumbent Mayor Sam Massell.

Simone Bell is a community organizer and former politician from Atlanta, Georgia. A Democrat, she was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in December 2009 from the state's 58th district in DeKalb and Fulton counties, and served until November 2015.

Rev. Joseph Everhart Boone was a civil rights activist and organizer who marched together with Martin Luther King Jr.

African Americans in Atlanta

Atlanta has long been known as a center of black wealth, higher education, political power and culture; a cradle of the Civil Rights Movement and home to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It has often been called a "black mecca".

1983 Boston mayoral election

The Boston mayoral election of 1983 occurred on Tuesday, November 15, 1983, between City Councillor Raymond Flynn and former State Representative Mel King. Flynn was elected to his first term, and inaugurated on Monday, January 2, 1984.

Chokwe Lumumba lawyer and politician from the USA

Chokwe Lumumba was an American attorney and politician, affiliated with the Republic of New Afrika and serving as its second vice president. He served as a human rights lawyer in Michigan and Mississippi. In 2013, after serving on the City Council, he was elected as Mayor of Jackson, Mississippi. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, as Edwin Finley Taliaferro, and was raised there, attending local schools.

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Atlanta, Georgia, United States.

The 1977 Atlanta mayoral election took place on October 4, 1977. Incumbent Mayor Maynard Jackson easily won a second term without the need for a runoff.

The 1985 Atlanta mayoral election took place on October 8, 1985. Incumbent Mayor Andrew Young easily won a second term against token opposition.

Keisha Lance Bottoms politician

Keisha Lance Bottoms is an American politician and lawyer who is the 60th and current Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia. Prior to becoming mayor, she was a member of the Atlanta City Council, representing part of Southwest Atlanta.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/government-politics/andrew-young-b-1932


This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.