Gay marriage is not on the ballot in Atlanta today, but the issue could make a difference in the race for Mayor. The ongoing gay marriage and gay rights debate has become a flashpoint in an election that could seat the city’s first white mayor since 1973. Both candidates have been pushed into a struggle to prove who is more gay-friendly to win the coveted vote of Atlanta’s gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) community.

Former Georgia State Senator Kasim Reed and current City Council member Mary Norwood have been sparring over gay rights and gay marriage since the November 3rd general election, trying to win over a voting bloc that could decide a run-off election that otherwise has been split loosely along racial lines. Reed, a black man, is expected to win Atlanta’s African-American majority, while Norwood, a white woman, is predicted to do well with white voters, especially in the city’s northern suburbs. But, ironically, it’s the gay vote that could be the deciding factor of this election in the heart of the mostly conservative Bible Belt.

Atlanta ranks third in the nation for the percentage of gay residents, making up approximately 12 percent of the city’s population. Gay and Lesbian activists have looked to both candidates for a definitive stance on gay marriage and gay rights.

Full Story from Fox News: http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2009/12/01/the-deciding-vote-in-atlanta/?test=latestnews

Click here for gay marriage resources in Georgia.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.