Shirley Franklin Endorses Mary Norwood Over Keisha Lance Bottoms
Things are getting a little crazy in the Atlanta Mayoral race!
43 years of Democratic leadership in Atlanta will come to an end if Mary Norwood is elected over Keisha Lance Bottoms. The two candidates faceoff in a runoff Tuesday Dec. 5 that could potentially put a white person as Mayor for the first time in over forty years. This week former Mayor Shirley Franklin shocked some folks by endorsing Mary Norwood, the endorsement is being run as part of an ad for Norwood, primarily on black radio. Here’s a transcript via the AJC:
“I’ve endorsed Mary Norwood for mayor. Some people say that endorsement may hurt my legacy, because I’ve endorsed a white woman over a black woman. This election is about character, transparency, and integrity. Not race.
“I’ve worked for mayors Maynard Jackson and Andrew Young, supported Gov. Roy Barnes, and have always fought for civil rights. I am proud to stand with Ceasar Mitchell, Cathy Woolard, John Eaves, Peter Aman, the policemen, the firefighters, and city workers – all who endorsed Mary Norwood for mayor.
“We can’t stand by and do nothing about the corruption and pay-to-play politics at City Hall. We must stand together….”
It’s interesting that Franklin mentions corruption because a lot of Atlanta residents feel she was corrupt during her term because the entire time she was Mayor her family operated a business at the airport. She was also accused of improperly, without council authorization, transferring over 100M improperly. Franklin’s term as Mayor is also remembered negatively because it was on her watch that an innocent 92-year-old woman, Katherine Johnson was killed in her home. After the Eagle Raid occurred, the city had to pay millions of dollars to settle lawsuits. There are also many who point out Franklin’s association with Billy Linville’s firm, reportedly being paid by the Norwood campaign. Soooooo seems kinda crazy that Franklin is the one out here talking about corruption.
On Friday, former Atlanta School Board candidate Charlie Stadtlander provided a 150-page dossier on Norwood. Statlander said after advising Norwood’s campaign earlier this year he refused to continue working with her because she wouldn’t correct financial impropriety.
Here are two short but damning clips from that press conference:
According to AJC reports:
A spokesperson for Norwood said that Stadtlander was fired from the campaign. Stadtlander said that was news to him and later showed reporters a $1,000 check that Norwood had written to his election campaign in July.
With the runoff just days away and polls showing Keisha Lance Bottoms trailing, much of black Atlanta has rallied around Bottoms. Killer Mike spoke out publicly this weekend supporting Bottoms:
Atlanta if you haven’t already gone to the polls, make sure you do!
