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.

Current Council President Doug Shipman, elected in 2021, isn’t running for a second term. His successor will preside over a 15-member body that drafts and passes all city laws, controls the budget, and can override mayoral vetoes. The president doesn’t usually vote but runs meetings, breaks ties, and serves as the council’s guiding voice.

“It’s a front-row seat to the city’s heartbeat,” Shipman says. “You see the Eastside neighborhood meetings, the new nonprofit in Midtown, the small business on the south side, and you get a sense of how it all fits together.”

The

See Full Page