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Cobb commissioner felt pressured to support Braves stadium move

COBB COUNTY, Ga. — On Wednesday, the lone Cobb County commissioner to vote against the Braves deal says she felt bullied and pressured to support the stadium project.

Lisa Cupid told Channel 2's Kerry Kavanaugh she stood her ground despite threats to her political future.

"The pace at which this moved along really seemed surreal," Cupid said.

Cupid, who represents District 4, says the pace at which the stadium deal unfolded was "uncomfortable" and made it tough for her to get behind.

Channel 2 Action News had the first interview with Cupid since she cast the sole vote against the Braves deal Tuesday night, telling a boisterous crowd, "I will not ever be bullied."

"What do you mean by that?" Kavanaugh asked. "Assurances about what would happen with my career, about the type of regret I would have if I didn't move forward with this decision, the relationships I had that I might not have if I didn't move forward with this decision," Cupid said.

Cupid made it clear she never felt pressured by her fellow commissioners or the Braves brass. She says the phone calls and face-to-face confrontations came from members of the community. But Cupid said the threats did not outweigh her concern for the county and specifically taxpayer's money.

"To see numbers associated with it so quickly without being substantiated and to see the creativity as to how we funded this compared to other things, something about this seemed markedly different," she said.

Yet Cupid says today is a new day and she is ready to work with all sides on the $672 million stadium project.

"I think we work together to make sure we do our due diligence moving forward," she said.

Commissioner Cupid says despite differing opinions, she feels supported by her fellow commissioners. She also says moving forward, she has received some assurances from the Braves that the process will be more transparent. She says the Braves have agreed to form a citizen advisory committee and make public various milestones in the project so citizens can weigh in ahead of time.