Bottoms announces transition team as ascendent Georgia Democrats prepare to run state government

Governor-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms didn’t have long to celebrate Tuesday’s historic win.  

The former Atlanta mayor became the first Georgia Democrat to be elected governor in decades, winning by more than 8 percentage points, and the first Black woman elected governor in the nation. 

Less than three days after that victory, she was standing on the steps inside the state Capitol unveiling her transition team as she prepares to lead the state starting in January. She rattled off a long list of transition team members, including Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank and filmmaker Tyler Perry. 

“Now the work begins,” Bottoms said at a Friday press conference. 

“The decisions that we make over the next few weeks about who will lead our agencies will shape how we will deliver for all Georgians over the next four years,” she also said. “Our goal is simple: to be ready to govern on day one.” 

The incoming governor hasn’t released many details yet about her legislative agenda for the first year of her term. But she is calling her transition plan “Georgia’s Promise” as a nod to her intention to make her pledges on the campaign trail a reality. 

“We are going to continue to focus on those issues that we’ve heard loud and clear over the last year and a half of this campaign,” Bottoms said. “Those issues related to concerns surrounding the cost of living, all things related to affordability, expanding access to quality and affordable healthcare and investing in our public schools, our teachers and our students.”

Bottoms said that she had talked to outgoing GOP Gov. Brian Kemp and that he has offered to do what he can to help make a smooth transition. His office confirmed that they had talked but didn’t offer further comment about their discussion. 

Kemp announced Wednesday morning that he would not call a special session to curtail the governor’s powers or to redraw Georgia’s political maps. But he did leave open the possibility of calling a special session to address “budgetary issues” before lawmakers return to Atlanta in January. 

It’s not clear yet what Kemp is referring to, but the governor did make the unusual move in May to cut $300 million in new spending after the state’s budget director said that a new income tax cut package created a $1.3 billion hole in the budget. 

In addition to that, Bottoms will also inherit diminished reserves, which a recent report shows dropped from $14.6 billion as of January to $8.7 billion. 

Bottoms cited her experience overseeing Atlanta’s budget in the wake of the pandemic and said she’s “used to getting tough things done.”

“Show me your budget, and I’ll show you your priorities,” she said. “And the priorities that I believe will be consistent relate to all things related to the cost of living and how we can help relieve that burden for people, especially in the midst of the cuts that have come from the Trump administration.” 

But it was clear Bottoms was also still absorbing the historic significance of her electoral success. 

“My husband put it in context. He said there have been a lot of Black women in America over the course of history, and God has said, ‘You get to be the first,’” Bottoms said when asked to reflect on the accomplishment. 

“I don’t take that lightly. I believe that it is representative of just the best of who we all are, that in this place, the South, with our very rich history, that Georgia gets to break that barrier. So I’m grateful for it, and as I’ve said repeatedly, I look forward to representing all of Georgia, and I hope for young boys and girls across this state, no matter where they live, no matter their race, no matter their background, I hope they see some inspiration in this moment.”