District 1 Commissioner Bridget Thorne is the only incumbent commissioner seeking reelection this year, and she faces Maggie Goldman in a rematch of their 2022 race. Goldman lost by fewer than 400 votes, according to Rough Draft Atlanta and Appen Media. Fulton County voters will also decide contests for two other commission districts and the commission chair.
Pitts backs Thorne
Pitts, the Democratic commission chairman, is supporting Thorne, a Republican. At an August campaign event, he praised Thorne’s contribution to the county and criticized Goldman’s positions on taxes and spending, Appen Media reported. Video from the event shows Pitts referring to Goldman as a “nutcase,” according to Appen Media’s account, which WABE republished with credit to its media partner.
SaportaReport separately interviewed Pitts, who defended his description of Goldman and said he objected to her criticism of the county. Goldman told SaportaReport that the language was inappropriate and linked the episode to her call for a new chair. Thorne did not respond to a comment request for the SaportaReport story.
Campaign and chair-race context
Goldman has described her priorities as property taxes, improvements to the jail and water system, addressing homelessness, and making county government work effectively, Appen Media reported. She responded to Pitts in an Instagram video; Appen Media reported that she said she disagreed with his remarks. Mo Ivory, who defeated Pitts in the Democratic primary runoff for commission chair, has endorsed Goldman and criticized Pitts’ comments, according to Appen Media. Ivory is now running against Republican Eric Tatum for the chair, Rough Draft Atlanta reported.
Property taxes and the county budget
The tax debate comes amid a longer shift in Fulton County’s property-tax rate and collections. Rough Draft Atlanta reported that the commission passed its 2026 operating budget in a 4-3 vote, keeping the assumed property-tax rate flat at 8.87 mills. The rate property owners pay had declined from its 2014 peak of 11.78 mills even as property values rose and county collections increased. That history shows why the millage rate alone does not describe the county’s revenue trend.
The account of the event and campaign responses relies on reporting by Appen Media, including its story republished by WABE. Pitts’ defense and Goldman’s response to SaportaReport are attributed to that outlet’s interview reporting; no independent interviews or verification are represented here.
