Nikema Willams: Congressional 5th District
Congresswoman Nikema Williams has been a fierce advocate for social justice, women and families throughout her political and professional career. She is proud to represent Georgia's Fifth Congressional District in the United States Congress. As a Member of Congress, Congresswoman Williams continues to uplift the legacy of her mentor and predecessor, Congressman John Lewis, by fighting to prevent voter suppression and expand free and fair access to the ballot box. She always centers the voices of those who are most marginalized. She brings this concern to Congress having seen firsthand how women and people of color continue to fight for racial and social justice in our country. Congresswoman Williams has a passion for a number of legislative issues including voting rights, reproductive justice, social justice, economic justice and healthcare—her work addresses delivering on the promise of America for all.
Sonya Russell: Fulton County Chairman
Sonya is a resident of Fulton County with over 25 years of law enforcement experience as a former Atlanta Police Officer and Federal Agent. While in her role as a Federal Agent she investigated fraud, waste and abuse. This makes her uniquely qualified to serve as Chairman of Fulton County. Sonya is also a wife, mother, and grandmother and grew up in many neighborhoods in Atlanta, including Peoplestown and Oakland City. Sonya has extensive business experience as the owner of salon suites in South Fulton, and having employed people across several continents through her securities company under the United States Department of Defense. As a public servant professional with leadership experience at the local and federal level, Sonya is a strong believer that the right leadership makes for a better community. She has built and sustained relationships that have brought people from diverse backgrounds together. She will take that same drive and energy and give Fulton County the fresh start everyone is longing for.
Horacena Tate: GA State Senate District 38
Senator Horacena Tate, a democrat, was first elected to the Georgia Senate from the 38th District in 1998, representing portions of Cobb and Fulton County. Sen. Tate is the Minority Caucus Chairwoman and currently serves as secretary for the Reapportionment and Redistricting committee. She also is a member of the Appropriations, Education and Youth, Rules, State and Local Governmental Operations and Urban Affairs committees. Sen. Tate is very active in community affairs. She has been the computer literacy advisor for the Butler Street YMCA, a volunteer software instructor for local churches, a delegate representing Clark Atlanta University at the International Community Education Conference in Trinidad and a speaker for several metro-Atlanta public schools’ functions. In 2001, she served as vice president of Rosalie Wright Community Council. Sen. Tate currently serves on the Atlanta-Fulton County Senate Delegation.
Sheila Jones: GA State Senate District 23
Before serving in the General Assembly, Sheila worked for Lockheed Martin Company, where she held many leadership roles as a member of the International Machinists & Aerospace Workers Union AFL-CIO (Local Lodge 709). Later, Sheila was elected as the Legislative Representative for the Georgia State Council of Machinists & Aerospace Workers, representing more than 9,000 working men and women Machinists throughout the state of Georgia. In this role, Sheila traveled to the Georgia State Capitol where she lobbied state Representatives & Senators and to Washington, DC to lobby national Representatives & Senators on issues affecting working families (to raise the minimum wage, unemployment benefits, and workers compensation).
Mesha Mainor: GA State Representative District 56
State Representative Mesha Mainor was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 2020, and she represents the citizens of House District 56 in the heart of Atlanta. Rep. Mainor is an Atlanta native and sixth generation Georgian with ancestral roots dating back to the 1820s as a decedent of the Mainor family from Dooly County, Georgia. Rep. Mainor is a leader and expert strategist in the health care, education, policy and business. With nearly 25 years of experience in servant leadership, she is known as a passionate advocate for equitable and quality human services. Her career includes leadership roles, creating educational programs for youth and businesses, public health in global settings, community engagement, providing resources and services to seniors and advocating for humanitarian rights.
Inga Willis: GA State Representative District 55
An Atlanta native and respected community leader, Inga has more than 20 years of professional experience as an entertainment guru, business consultant, political strategist and philanthropist. Committed to social justice and impact, Inga also serves on the board of directors of the United States Hemp Growers Association, Howard University Alumni Association, she also serves on the advisory council for U.S. Congresswoman Nikema Williams, Chair of the Georgia Democratic Party. 18 years ago, Inga launched The Mogul Group - an international consultancy and publishing firm, that develops marketing strategies, brand sponsorships, global business development initiatives and campaigns for issues and candidates. The Mogul Group aided The Carter Center (1998-2001), Shirley Franklin for Mayor (2001), Kamala Harris for President (2019), Stacey Abrams for Governor (2018), Ceasar Mitchell for Mayor (2017) and has worked with Audi, Calvin Klein, Rocawear, Atlantic Records, Jack Daniels, BET, Epic Records, MTV, and Viacom.
Judge Shalanda Miller: Fulton County Superior Court
Judge Shalanda Miller is a Fulton County Juvenile Court Judge navigating family, dependency, and delinquency matters in very delicate family circumstances. She is the associate judge serving parents with substance abuse disorders on the family dependency treatment court which provides an alternative to the adversarial approach traditionally used in dependency cases and is designed to preserve the family through court intervention and services. Judge Miller was integral in the effort to define court operations and procedures to prevent a disruption of court functions during the COVID-19 pandemic. She has helped identify opportunities for efficiencies in court operations, draft policies and form orders to better serve the children and families involved with the court. Judge Miller has also lead the effort in training and developing summer judicial interns to accelerate their learning curve and inspire them to a career of service.
LaTonya Martin Rogers: Fulton County School Board District 6
Dr. LaTonya Martin Rogers is a passionate supporter of public education who will fight to keep our schools safe, adequately funded, and focused on excellence in education. LaTonya believes, our schools must provide the environment and opportunity for our students to achieve and excel and highlight the “Quality of Life” concerns of our community for all our residents. Children today must have the literacy, communication, and technological skills to be productive and successful. We must clearly focus on building the skills of all our students, whether AP, language learner, or Special Education, for lifelong learning and success in our community. LaTonya supports school leadership that emphasizes long term quality over short term test results. LaTonya is also a former elected official for the City of East Point, Georgia. This experience was gratifying and allowed her to continue building upon her skill set she developed as an educator. During her term on city council, she was able to; work with the citizens of East Point to discuss challenges within the city and the Ward she represented, participated in council meetings, vote on matters put before the council, direct the enforcement of city ordinances, appoint administrative personnel, conduct city business, manage the city’s financial operations, and conduct intergovernmental affairs.
Kwanzaa Hall: Lieutenant Governor
Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Congressman Kwanza Hall is the son of the late Leon W. Hall, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s youngest lieutenant. He attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is an alumnus of Benjamin E. Mays High School in Atlanta. Hall dedicated the first half of his life to public service in a variety of capacities. For 15 years, Hall served as an elected official on Atlanta City Council and on the Atlanta School Board. He represented the city’s most socially and economically diverse council district. As Councilman for District 2. Most recently, Hall served as United States Representative for Georgia’s 5th district, completing the late Congressman John Lewis’ term. Although he only served 33 days, many historians have said this period has proven to be one of the most consequential periods in US history. In the spirit of continuing the legacy of leadership and activism passed down from Ambassador Andrew Young and Congressman Lewis, Hall introduced 6 pieces of legislation requesting $55million dollars for transit-oriented development on Atlanta’s Southside, cosponsored 14 additional bills, advocated on the floor of Congress 18 times and voted on 25 separate occasions for over $3trillion in the combined Covid Relief, Omnibus and Military budgets. The hallmark of his service has been about being a bridge for the next generation of leaders in social justice, job creation and equal economic opportunity for all.
Robert Kelly: Fulton County Commission District 5
Robert H. Kelly began his career in county government in the Clerk to the Commission Office before joining the late Commissioner Emma I. Darnell's staff as the Assistant to the Commissioner for Public Policy & Legislative Affairs. He currently serves as the Chief of Staff for Commissioner Khadijah Abdur-Rahman. He holds a Doctor of Jurisprudence Degree and a Master of Public Administration Degree from the University of Georgia, and earned his bachelor's degree at the University of West Georgia. Prior to entering the public sector, Robert worked for the number one consumer goods company in the world as an Account Manager on their Southeastern Corporate Sales Team managing 3-billion dollar brands. Kelly married to his law-school sweetheart, he is the father of two toddlers: a son and daughter, Levi and Lily Kelly. He is a resident of the City of South Fulton. In his current role as Chief of Staff in the Mighty 6 District Office, Robert Kelly provides overall leadership of the team that supports the management, operations, communications, legislative affairs and outreach for Commissioner Khadijah and the District 6 Office. He also provides senior policy research and analysis used in the planning and implementation of public policy and legislation.
Rick Blalock: Fulton County Commission District 1
In his 19th year of service, Rick Blalock holds the distinction of being the "Dean of Staff" among the six commission-district offices of Fulton County Government. He was first appointed special assistant to the commissioner in 2003, by the late Commissioner Emma I. Darnell, and was renominated by Commissioner Khadijah in January 2021. In his role as special assistant, Rick is a senior advisor providing strategic advice and counsel to the Commissioner in critical areas, including communications, public-policy development, legislation, political and intergovernmental affairs. Last year, Rick wrote Fulton County’s most extensive economic stability package in its history. The $206 million Rescue Implementation Plan (RIP). It called for helping people survive the pandemic by allocating $35 million in home mortgage assistance and millions for rental and utilities assistance. Rick also added money for youth and young-adult jobs and training, small business grants and nonprofit assistance. Rick Blalock is a two-time Emmy-winning journalist, who before joining the Board of Commissioners staff, was a television broadcast reporter and news anchor at FOX5 News and 11Alive, who broke the news stories of the massive federal probe of public corruption in the Fulton County Chairman's Office and in the Mayor's Office at Atlanta City Hall.
William Boddie: Georgia Labor Commissioner
Rep. Boddie is a native of Atlanta and a 1995 Graduate of Banneker High School in College Park, Georgia. He currently resides in East Point, Georgia. Rep. Boddie is a proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., the 100 Black Men of Atlanta, Inc., and the Georgia NAACP. He is also a proud Democrat and has membership with the Democratic National Committee (DNC), Democratic Party of Georgia (DPG), the Fulton County Democratic Party, the Douglas County Democratic Party, and the South Fulton Democrats. The current State Representative of GA House District 62, William Boddie is a 2022 Democratic Candidate for Georgia Labor Commissioner. Rep. Boddie was first elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in November 2016. After just one term in office, his Georgia House Democratic Caucus (GHDC) colleagues elected Rep. Boddie to serve as the Minority Whip in November 2018, the second-ranking Democrat in the Georgia House of Representatives. Before being elected to the GHDC leadership, Rep. Boddie was appointed to serve as the Communications Chair of the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus (GLBC) in July 2017. Rep. Boddie currently serves on Budget & Fiscal Affairs Oversight, Judiciary Non-Civil, Small Business Development, and Special Committee on Access to the Civil Justice System committees. Rep. Boddie is a member of the Georgia House Democratic Caucus, the Georgia Working Families Caucus, and the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus.
Brandon Tonge: GA State Representative District 58
Brandon Tonge is uniquely qualified to the be the next member of the Georgia House of Representatives. In addition to owning and operating a successful small business in the heart of the City of Atlanta, he spends a great deal of his spare time working in the community to help make a Brighter Future for Georgia. Recently he was honored for his distinguished leadership and appointed to the Fulton County Arts Council, which makes recommendations on how the county allocates its funding of the arts in Metro Atlanta. Brandon is also a member of the 100 Black Men of America; Morehouse Alumni Association and attends Impact Church. Brandon earned his master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health (community) counseling from Clark Atlanta University and his bachelor's degree in psychology from Morehouse College. He got the bug for public service while a student at Redan High School at which he was elected secretary of his senior class. As one of Atlanta's leading event architects, his company has produced several large-scale event programs to benefit the entire community while providing young people with good-paying jobs. When not at work, church or spending quality time with his family, Brandon can be seen exercising on the various Atlanta bike trails: his favorites are the Beltline and the Silver Comet Trail.
Phil Olaleye: GA State Representative District 59
Phil grew up in a working class family in Stone Mountain, GA, the son of immigrants. As a youth, Phil had to travel two hours one-way to school each day to receive a decent public education. As soon as he was old enough, Phil began working at Waffle House and Best Buy to help support his single mother and family. These childhood experiences cemented values of sacrifice, dignity in work, and the value of a quality education. Phil attended Duke University as a working student, spending school breaks studying predatory lending policies across Georgia and the Southeast. After working at Citigroup to pay off college loans, Phil left to serve his country in the United States Peace Corps. After three years of supporting an indigenous community in the Philippines, Phil returned to the U.S. to study at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and organize in the Mississippi Delta (Baptist Town, MS). Upon graduation, he moved back to Atlanta to put the things he had learned into practice at home. Phil was a Director at WorkSource Atlanta, helping job seekers receive skills training and support to increase employability and access career paths. As Executive Director of Next Generation Men & Women, Phil has grown a 50-student non-profit into one that serves almost 350 students across four Atlanta high schools and partners with 70 local colleges and companies to create exposure and mentorship opportunities for our young people. As President of the Organized Neighbors of Summerhill, Phil has led community initiatives that secured 16 neighborhood security cameras, completed a multi-park project, and passed City legislation to limit development impacts on residents — legacy and new.