Politics

The “Atlanta Way”—as city leaders liked to call their pro-business, pro-racial harmony approach—proved good for the city. Today, Atlanta has become the urban metropolis it was still striving to be in the 1960s. City leaders—Black and White alike—continue to work together to ensure it is one of the nation’s most appealing cities for business. But the city is faced with a troubling problem as vexing as any during the civil rights era: By most measures, we have one of the largest income gaps of any city in the country.

These are Atlanta's 500 most powerful leaders. We spent months consulting experts and sorting through nominations to get a list of the city's most influential people—from artists to chefs to philanthropists to sports coaches and corporate CEOs. In this section, we focus on civic leaders, government and politics, transportation, and utilities.

On a November night inside a Decatur event venue, the crowd included politicians and hopeful candidates—but that evening, the stage belonged to a group of people who’d never planned to be political at all. In between sets of acoustic music about “making good trouble” and “finding our better angels,” supporters listened as former CDC workers—some wearing masquerade-style masks to protect their identities—shared their stories of finding a deep sense of purpose in their work at CDC, only to be abruptly fired en masse in April. After years of working in suicide prevention, tribal health, and other specialties, these workers now found renewed purpose in a field that they’d meticulously avoided in their former roles: politics.

In Georgia, suburban women are becoming a dominant political force. They are getting involved in local and state races, writing postcards, canvassing, and participating in phone banks—and, increasingly, they are running for office themselves. Around metro Atlanta, suburban women’s political engagement has been key to shifting Georgia further to the left.

Every four years, Atlanta voters choose a mayor—and a city council president. The mayor gets more attention, but insiders know the council president can quietly steer the city’s agenda. This November, that gavel changes hands. Two contenders want Shipman’s job. Marci Collier Overstreet, who currently represents District 11, and Rohit Malhotra, founder of the Center for Civic Innovation.

Former DeKalb CEO Michael Thurmond wants to chart a middle course in his campaign, emphasizing inclusivity, respect for political differences, and a commitment to coalition building that may be attractive to voters looking for a more moderate, sensible approach to politics. But in these times of divisiveness, it remains to be seen if voters on either side really want to embrace a campaign with a vision of bringing people together.

It was just over 40 years ago, on July 25, 1985, that legendary University of Georgia football coach Vince Dooley shut down the rampant speculation that he was going to run for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in the 1986 election. Now, his son Derek is considering running for the GOP nomination for the senate seat currently held by Democrat Jon Ossoff.

Lately, Georgia State University law professor Anthony Michael Kreis has become a go-to source on questions about President Donald Trump’s frenzied efforts to reshape the federal government—the main question usually being, "Can he do that?" When it comes to Trump’s executive order overturning the constitutional right of birthright citizenship, Kreis’s reply is unequivocal: No, he cannot.

If former DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond announces in the weeks ahead that he's running for the Democratic nomination for governor, which seems increasingly likely, one of his most important allies on the campaign trail will be a Georgian who died 240 years ago.

With Brian Kemp's announcement that he will not run for U.S. Senate in 2026, his next steps are mere speculation at this point. He's mentioned frequently as a possible candidate for president in 2028. In the meantime, he can play a key role in supporting Republican candidates around the country next year.