Andre Dickens was sworn in for a second term as mayor of Atlanta on Monday afternoon, becoming the 61st person to hold the office and only the fourth Atlanta mayor in modern history to begin a second consecutive full term without first winning a runoff.
The ceremony, held inside the Georgia State University Convocation Center, included all four of Dickens’s living predecessors — Andrew Young, Bill Campbell, Shirley Franklin, and Kasim Reed — seated in the front row of the dignitaries section.
“We are not done. We are just getting started.”
— Andre Dickens, in his second inaugural remarks
What Dickens promised
In a roughly 25-minute speech, Dickens sketched out a second-term agenda anchored on three priorities:
- Public safety. Dickens said he would push the Atlanta City Council to fund a new class of 250 police officers in the FY2027 budget, on top of the 600-officer hiring plan announced in 2024.
- Affordable housing. He reaffirmed his commitment to put a $1.3 billion housing bond before voters in November 2026 — the largest such measure in the city’s history.
- Transit expansion. He said his administration would publish a final list of MARTA expansion projects to be funded by the proposed TAD extensions by the end of the first quarter.
“The city that became the capital of the New South in 1996 is now the capital of a country that wants to figure out how to grow inclusively. We are the test case. Let’s pass it.”
— Andre Dickens, in his second inaugural remarks
Who’s on the new City Council
The swearing-in also brought a substantially reshaped Atlanta City Council into office.
- Marci Collier Overstreet was sworn in as the new City Council President, becoming only the third person to hold the role in the last 20 years. Overstreet previously represented District 11 (southwest Atlanta) and replaces longtime Council President Doug Shipman.
- All 15 district council members and the three at-large members were sworn in, including Matt Westmoreland, Eshé Collins, and Michael Julian Bond, who all returned to their seats.
What the ceremony looked like
The ceremony drew about 3,000 guests, including Governor Brian Kemp, U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, and a long list of state and local officials. Music was provided by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra chorus and the Morehouse College Glee Club.
The event closed with confetti cannons and a brief fireworks display visible from the Convocation Center plaza — a flourish that drew some raised eyebrows from the council members who will soon be asked to vote on the FY2027 budget.
What’s next
Dickens’s first major second-term test comes in March, when he is expected to release his proposed FY2027 city budget. The document will provide the first concrete test of whether the new council shares the mayor’s priorities on housing, transit, and public safety.
The first full City Council meeting of the new term is scheduled for January 12.
Marcus James covers the Georgia statehouse and Atlanta city hall for WACN 21. Reach him at mjames@wacn21.com.
