Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has officially entered the race for governor of Georgia, launching her campaign with a video released on Tuesday. Bottoms, who previously served in the Biden administration after choosing not to seek a second term as mayor, cited the recent reelection of President Donald Trump as a major motivating factor behind her decision to run.
“November was a turning point for me, and I know it was for people across the state of Georgia and for people across the country,” she told Politico ahead of her announcement. If successful, Bottoms would make history as Georgia’s first Black governor and could help Democrats reclaim a position they haven’t held in a generation. Her campaign arrives at a critical moment as the state’s political landscape continues to evolve.
Georgia has demonstrated its status as a pivotal swing state in recent elections, with Joe Biden winning the state in 2020 and Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock securing Senate seats, though Trump reclaimed Georgia in the 2024 presidential election. Bottoms enters the race with significant name recognition throughout Georgia but faces questions about her ability to appeal to voters outside the Atlanta metropolitan area. Her unexpected decision to forego seeking a second term as mayor has also raised concerns among some Democratic voters about her commitment to public office.
Republican competition and policy priorities in a post-Trump election landscape
According to Politico, the 2026 Democratic primary is shaping up to be competitive, with state Senator Jason Esteves and Atlanta-area pastor Olu Brown already declared as candidates, while Representative Lucy McBath has suspended her exploratory bid but may still enter the race later.
On the Republican side, state Attorney General Chris Carr launched his campaign last year, and Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, known for her strong support of Trump’s MAGA movement, is reportedly considering entering the race after deciding not to pursue a Senate seat next year. The 2026 governor’s race could serve as an important indicator of the political direction of Georgia following Trump’s presidency and potentially signal trends for the next presidential election.
Bottoms has outlined several policy priorities for her campaign, including initiatives to support and attract small businesses to Georgia, addressing teacher shortages by eliminating income taxes for educators, and expanding Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Regarding healthcare, she noted that Georgia lags behind neighboring states, saying, “We always talk about beating Alabama and LSU and football, but those states are beating us when it comes to health care.”
Throughout her political career, Bottoms has navigated numerous challenges. Her term as Atlanta mayor coincided with a major cyber attack on the city, a federal corruption investigation into her predecessor Kasim Reed, the COVID-19 pandemic, and civil unrest following the police shooting of Rayshard Brooks. After leaving office, she joined the Biden administration as a senior adviser overseeing the White House Office of Public Engagement and served on the president’s Export Council until 2023. Bottoms has publicly disputed Trump’s claim that he fired her from the Export Council, stating that she resigned prior to Trump taking office.
Her campaign launch comes during a complicated period for Democrats, coinciding with the release of a book alleging that former President Biden experienced significant mental decline toward the end of his term. Addressing these allegations, Bottoms stated that mental acuity issues “was not my observation in any of the interactions I had with the President.” Bottoms now hopes to capitalize on potential voter concerns about economic uncertainty resulting from Trump’s tariff policies as she attempts to shift Georgia back to the Democratic column in 2026.
Published: May 20, 2025 08:13 am