Democratic candidates for Fulton County Commission Chair pitched themselves to voters Thursday evening at a labor and progressive forum ahead of the May 19 primary. Incumbent Chair Robb Pitts, District 5 Commissioner Marvin Arrington Jr., and former District 4 Commissioner Mo Ivory traded positions on the Fulton County Jail, the housing crisis, election security, and public transit expansion.
The candidates also split over whether to extend the timelines on the city's eight tax allocation districts (TADs), which Mayor Andre Dickens is counting on to fund his $5.5 billion Neighborhood Reinvestment Initiative. That plan requires county approval. Pitts, who has chaired the commission since 2017, leaned on his record of lowering the property tax millage rate and suing the federal government after the FBI raid on Fulton's elections office. "I believe that we're at war with Washington. This is not the time for on-the-job training."
Ivory, who resigned her District 4 seat to run for chair, pushed back hard. "This race is not about political comfort. It is about whether Fulton County will keep protecting the status quo, or finally, start protecting the people." Arrington pointed to his work on veterans' services and pre-arrest jail diversion programs. Early voting starts April 27.
