Sandy Springs heads to the polls Tuesday for what could be the most competitive mayoral election in the city’s 20-year history, with three challengers taking on a three-term incumbent who once said he was too tired to run again.
Why It Matters: The next mayor will steer Georgia’s seventh-largest city through critical decisions on redevelopment, housing affordability, and education — issues that have divided voters and fueled unusually sharp exchanges between candidates who’ve spent years working together at City Hall.
What’s Happening: Incumbent Mayor Rusty Paul faces strong challenges from two city council members, Andy Bauman and Jody Reichel, and public relations executive Dontaye Carter. All four qualified for the November 4 ballot in what has become the biggest campaign battle in one of Georgia’s biggest cities.
Paul brings more than 40 years of federal, state and local government experience to the race, including serving as Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations under President George H.W. Bush. He was elected to Sandy Springs’ founding city council in 2005 and became the city’s second mayor in 2013. Under his leadership, the city built the $225 million City Springs campus and a new police headquarters.
But a 2021 email surfaced during the campaign in which Paul wrote he felt tired — a line his opponents have used to argue the city needs fresh energy. Paul maintains he wants to finish what he started.
Bauman, a self-employed attorney and real estate investor, was elected to City Council in 2013 and co-founded the Sandy Springs Farmers Market in 2010. He sponsored Georgia’s first municipal hate crime ordinance in 2019, almost a year before the state adopted its own law. His campaign focuses on what he calls missed opportunities — stalled developments, vacant office spaces, and a city that should be leading, not lagging behind its neighbors.
Reichel, a real estate investor and two-term council member first elected in 2017, led the nine-year effort to secure a new North Springs High School building. She’s made creating an independent Sandy Springs school district a central campaign promise, despite constitutional hurdles. She’s run 27 marathons, including Boston twice, and applies that same relentless focus to getting things done, she says.
Carter, founder of Carter Media Group, ran against Paul in 2021 and received just over 30 percent of the vote. He announced his 2025 candidacy at the King Center in Atlanta, invoking Dr. King’s legacy and his own great-great-grandfather, who was born into slavery in Selma. His platform centers on fair housing, capping property taxes, and ensuring teachers and first responders can afford to live in the city where they work.
Between the Lines: Candidates have collectively raised more than $300,000 through April, with Bauman leading fundraising at $109,396 and Paul at $122,188 total. That’s unusual money for a city race — and a sign of how much residents care about the outcome.
The biggest flashpoints have been North End redevelopment and schools. During candidate forums, Bauman and Reichel challenged Paul on why more progress hasn’t been made during his three terms, while Paul countered that the council members supported everything the city has done from a development standpoint.
On schools, Reichel wants to establish an independent district even if it requires changing the Georgia Constitution. Paul calls it a pipe dream and advocates for parent-directed charter schools instead. Bauman says the mayor shouldn’t get drawn into these rabbit holes. Carter spoke about parental involvement in existing public schools.
Housing has emerged as a defining issue. All four candidates acknowledge that teachers, nurses, and first responders struggle to afford living in Sandy Springs, but they differ sharply on solutions. Bauman touts his first responder housing program. Carter proposes Tax Allocation Districts and pathways to homeownership. Reichel focuses on smart redevelopment near transit. Paul argues the market will sort itself out once lending loosens.
The Big Picture: Sandy Springs turns 20 years old in December. The city that fought for four decades to incorporate has become home to Fortune 500 companies like UPS and Mercedes-Benz USA, but aging apartment complexes in the North End and the closure of Spalding Drive Elementary have left some residents questioning whether the city is keeping up with rapid changes in metro Atlanta.
Both Bauman and Reichel are Jewish, and the race has attracted attention from the Jewish community, with many prominent Jewish leaders supporting Paul despite having Jewish candidates in the race. The dynamic reflects how relationships built over decades can matter more than identity in local politics.
Polls open at 7 a.m. Tuesday and close at 7 p.m. If no candidate receives a majority, the top two finishers head to a runoff. The city has already budgeted $300,000 for that possibility.
