Voters agree crime will likely be big issue in November election for new Atlanta mayor

ATLANTA — Atlanta’s continued crime wave will likely be one of the hottest topics as the city decides who will be its next mayor.

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has announced that she will not seek a second term in November.

Channel 2′s Richard Elliot spent the day Monday speaking with voters across the city.

It was so hot outside Monday that the usually popular Westside Trail Extension of the Atlanta Beltline was nearly empty of runners, except for Usman Khalid.

He agreed that crime will probably be the hot topic for the upcoming mayor’s race, but he said how the next mayor handles it will be tricky.

“I think it’s definitely a big issue; they’re going to have to balance crime with social justice and things that have happened recently, though. So I don’t know what the answer is, but hopefully they do,” Khalid said.

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Elliot then went north to Chastain Park where the tree cover provided more shade for people to get outdoors.

Brittany Howard was walking with her son Beckett. Crime, she said, is an issue she’ll consider when voting.

“Are you worried about crime?” Elliot asked Howard.

“More so than I used to be,” Howard said.

“How come?” Elliot asked.

“It seems like it’s on the rise,” Howard said.

Jay Williams told Elliot he was so worried about the recent crime he’s seen, he was worried about coming to Chastain to walk. He said he wants to know all the candidates’ positions on what to do about it.

“I think it will play a big part in who I vote for for mayor as far as it is a priority for them because I know a lot of citizens in this area. It’s a huge priority for us now,” Williams said.

Back in Southwest Atlanta’s Adair Park neighborhood, Jamecia Boyd worries that people are so fed up with things that they just may not vote at all.

“I really feel like people are not even going to care about voting anymore because of what has been going on. I feel like we have no control over lots of stuff anyway, and so when it comes to voting, we’re like, ‘Why should we vote?’” Boyd said.

The election for the next mayor of Atlanta will be held this November.

Former Mayor Kasim Reed filed paperwork today to run for mayor again Former Mayor Kasim Reed did not confirm that he would run for mayor again but he filed the paperwork and launched a campaign website indicating another run.

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