Longtime Atlanta City Council member to serve final term in office, won’t seek reelection in 2026

ATLANTA — After more than 20 years in service to the Atlanta City Council, longtime member Howard Shook announced he will not be seeking reelection. He was first elected to council to serve District 7 in 2001.

Quoting British writer Geoffrey Chaucer, famed for the Canterbury Tales, Shook said “All good things must come to an end,” and said that while his service as an elected official was one of the best things that had ever happened to him, it was time for that privilege to end.

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In a letter announcing his retirement in 2025, Shook said he will finish out the coming year as a member of the council.

“It was my good fortune to take office with a built-in dislike of elected officials eager to appear as all things to all people,” Shook wrote, describing his time in office. “In support of you, I have striven to be plain-spoken, ethical, independent, fact-driven, bottom-line-oriented, eager to work with others and, when required, ready and able to fight.”

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He said by not running for reelection, he’s given himself the opportunity to reflect on the notable accomplishments of the Atlanta City Council, and took a look back on his record while serving Atlanta’s constituents.

“By my calculation, I will have cast 60,000 votes by the end of this term. While I’m quite sure that not everyone was pleased with all of them, I do feel that my record reflects our mainstream sentiments and desired outcomes,” Shook said in his letter.

He closed out the letter by thanking the city for its support and said he looked forward to serving as a citizen, rather than a council member “as we hurtle into our future.”

Shook will remain a member of the Atlanta City Council until the final meeting of the 2025 calendar year.

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