2023 Mableton mayoral election explained

Election Name:2023 Mableton mayoral election
Type:presidential
Ongoing:no
Next Election:2027 Mableton mayoral election
Next Year:2027
1Blank:First round
2Blank:Second round
Election Date:March 21, 2023 (first round)
April 18, 2023 (runoff)
Image1:Dr. Michael Owens Wants to Strengthen Democracy Using Technology.jpg
Candidate1:Michael Owens
Colour1:c0c0c0
1Data1:1,846
31%
2Data1:3,396
56%
Candidate2:Aaron Carman
Colour2:c0c0c0
1Data2:2,162
36%
2Data2:2,703
44%
Candidate4:LaTonia Long
Colour4:c0c0c0
1Data4:1,472
24%
Candidate5:Michael Murphy
Colour5:c0c0c0
1Data5:561
9%
Mayor
After Election:Michael Owens
After Party:Democratic Party (United States)

The 2023 Mableton mayoral election took place on March 21, 2023 in the Atlanta suburb of Mableton, Georgia, with a runoff held on April 18, 2023 as no candidate got 50% of the vote in the general election. Aaron Carman gained the most votes in the first round but lost the runoff to former Cobb County Democratic Committee chair Michael Owens who became the first mayor of Mableton, Georgia in over 100 years.[1] Despite the runoff election being described as historic, only 6,113 votes were cast and voter turnout remained low at 12.9% of 47,200 registered voters.[2] [3]

Background

Mableton had previously been incorporated as a city on August 19, 1912 but was disincorporated four years later when a flood overwhelmed its sewer system.[4] The nonprofit organization South Cobb Alliance started the campaign for Mableton to be incorporated. Mableton was the last of four proposed new cities in Metro Atlanta to be approved; the other three, East Cobb, Lost Mountain and Vinings, all failed to be incorporated as municipalities in referendums.[5] In May 2022, Brentin Mock of Bloomberg News described the city movement in Metro Atlanta as being "defeated".[5] Though Mock reported that Mableton was different as it was the only one out of the four to have a majority non-white population and is assembling around "principles of diversity, affordability and inclusive voting rights".[6] Politically, Mableton is in Cobb County whose board of commissioners was majority white and Republican for most of its history, until 2020 when it became majority black and Democrat.[6] According to a preliminary analysis from Cobb County, the incorporation of Mableton would result in a net annual loss of $8 million from the city's budget after accounting for the services that the county would no longer provide for it.[6]

In November 2022, the city was reincorporated in an election with 53% of the vote and a margin of just over 1,700 votes.[7] The majority of no votes were concentrated in the north of Mableton, where household income is higher. Human resources director Mark Sette said it was a "power grab" to annex unincorporated areas of north Mableton to "pay for all of the projects that they want down there [in south Mableton]". Thousands of people signed a petition to de-annex areas that voted no from the city.[8] Mableton was different in that the supporters of de-annexation were multi-racial and multi-generational while organizers of similar secession movements tended to be mainly older white residents.[9]

Michael Owens stated that he was not against de-annexation but that his focus was on the majority of Mableton residents who wish to be in the city. LaTonia Long and Michael Murphy both opposed de-annexation. Mayoral candidate Aaron Carman said that he supported the people involved in the de-annexation effort but stated that if the de-annexation efforts do not pass, Mableton needed someone that could "bring the city together".[10] State representative David Wilkerson submitted two de-annexation bills that would have allowed some areas to de-annex from Mableton but both failed in the Georgia General Assembly. A compromise bill in response to the bills submitted by Wilkerson was drafted by state representatives Terry Cummings and Michael Smith but this also failed as it was not published in time.[11] [12]

Candidates

General election

Fundraising

Campaign finance reports as of March 15, 2023
CandidateTotal raisedCash on hand
Aaron Carman$9,600Not disclosed
LaTonia Long$21,940$7,775
Michael Murphy$6,750Not disclosed
Michael OwensNot disclosedNot disclosed

Runoff

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Mableton first-ever mayor talks his top priorities for Cobb County's largest city. June 13, 2023. December 23, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231223204319/https://www.wabe.org/mableton-first-ever-mayor-talks-his-top-proprieties-for-cobb-countys-largest-city/. December 23, 2023. live. WABE.
  2. Web site: Michael Owens elected mayor of Mableton. April 19, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://archive.today/20231225133525/https://sports.yahoo.com/michael-owens-elected-mayor-mableton-035900737.html?guccounter=1. December 25, 2023. live. Yahoo Sports.
  3. Web site: Turnout, enthusiasm remained low for Mableton's historic runoff elections. Ryan. Zickgraf. April 19, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225133625/https://atlantaciviccircle.org/2023/04/19/turnout-enthusiasm-remained-low-for-mabletons-historic-runoff-elections/. December 25, 2023. live. Atlanta Civic Circle.
  4. Web site: When Mableton first was (and shortly thereafter wasn't) a city. Larry Felton. Johnson. August 20, 2023. December 23, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231223195049/https://cobbcountycourier.com/2023/08/mableton-city/. December 23, 2023. live. Cobb County Courier.
  5. News: The Cityhood Movement Is Defeated in Metro Atlanta. Bloomberg . May 25, 2022. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225163321/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-05-25/the-cityhood-movement-is-defeated-in-metro-atlanta?sref=A1Z2GUXp. December 25, 2023. live. www.bloomberg.com.
  6. News: A Different Kind of Cityhood Movement in Metro Atlanta. Bloomberg . May 26, 2022. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225163448/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-05-26/how-to-create-an-inclusive-city?sref=A1Z2GUXp. December 25, 2023. live. www.bloomberg.com.
  7. Web site: Voters choose to incorporate Mableton, making it Georgia's newest city. Denise. Dillon. November 9, 2022. December 24, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231224183303/https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/voters-choose-to-incorporate-mableton-making-it-georgias-newest-city. December 24, 2023. live. FOX 5 Atlanta.
  8. Web site: Some residents push to de-annex from newly-formed Mableton. Denise. Dillon. January 18, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225003414/https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/push-to-de-annex-from-mableton. December 25, 2023. live. FOX 5 Atlanta.
  9. News: Residents of Suburban Atlanta's Newest City Are Already Trying to Secede. Bloomberg . January 24, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225145419/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-24/atlanta-suburbs-residents-want-to-secede-from-new-city-of-mableton. December 25, 2023. live. www.bloomberg.com.
  10. Web site: Q&A with Mableton mayoral candidates. February 28, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225004027/https://news.yahoo.com/q-mableton-mayoral-candidates-233600472.html. December 25, 2023. live. Yahoo News.
  11. Web site: Polls open Tuesday to decide Mableton's first mayor, city council. Denise. Dillon. March 20, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225003345/https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/mableton-mayor-city-council-election. December 25, 2023. live. FOX 5 Atlanta.
  12. Web site: Mableton de-annexation fails under the Gold Dome. March 20, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://archive.today/20231225150705/https://finance.yahoo.com/news/mableton-annexation-fails-under-gold-223500792.html?guccounter=1. December 25, 2023. live. Yahoo Finance.
  13. Web site: Mableton City Candidates. March 21, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225011531/https://www.mableton.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mableton-Candidate-List_January-20-2023-revised-2-06-23.pdf. December 25, 2023. live. www.mableton.org.
  14. Web site: LaTonia Long leads fundraising race among Mableton mayoral candidates. March 15, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://archive.today/20231225005430/https://news.yahoo.com/latonia-long-leads-fundraising-race-223900421.html?guccounter=1. December 25, 2023. live. Yahoo News.
  15. Web site: Mableton Mayoral Candidate Michael Owens endorsed by former mayoral candidates. April 3, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225112824/https://spotlightsouthcobbnews.com/mableton-mayoral-candidate-michael-owens-endorsed-by-former-mayoral-candidates/. December 25, 2023. live. spotlightsouthcobbnews.com.
  16. Web site: Mableton mayoral candidates offer their plans for trash service. March 16, 2023. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225004200/https://finance.yahoo.com/news/mableton-mayoral-candidates-offer-plans-035900891.html. December 25, 2023. live. Yahoo Finance.
  17. Web site: Michael Murphy. December 25, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231225013138/https://www.georgiablackrepublicancouncil.org/team/michael-murphy. December 25, 2023. live. Georgia Black Republican Council.
  18. Web site: Cobb County Democrat Dr. Michael Owens enters race for Georgia Secretary of State. September 26, 2021. December 24, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231224085034/https://spotlightsouthcobbnews.com/cobb-county-democrat-dr-michael-owens-enters-race-for-georgia-secretary-of-state/. December 24, 2023. live. spotlightsouthcobbnews.com.

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