Paul Defeats Carter in Sandy Springs Mayoral Runoff
Incumbent Rusty Paul took in nearly 70 percent of the votes in the Dec. 2 election.
Incumbent Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul handily defeated challenger Dontaye Carter in a runoff election on Dec. 2.
Paul received 69.27 percent of the votes (10,298) with Carter garnering 30.73 percent (4,568) with 14,866 total votes cast.
“I’m very gratified by the clear bipartisan nature of my victory,” Paul said. “It shows that we can transcend the partisan divide that afflicts so much of our political discourse and focus on uniting our community in a shared vision for our future.”
Paul then gave special recognition to the Sandy Springs Jewish community for their support in getting him reelected.
“I’m extremely gratified by my very strong support within our Jewish community. Our Jewish community knows I’ve strongly and clearly stood with them both in good and bad times,” he said.
Paul added that he left his victory party to attend the Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism in New Orleans, which was sponsored by the Combat Antisemitism Movement where Paul serves on the Mayors Advisory Committee.
None of the four candidates received a majority of the vote in the Nov. 4 election, which led to the top two vote-getters, Paul and Carter, to face off in a runoff. The initial election votes were as follows:
Incumbent Mayor Rusty Paul: 43 percent | 9,620
Dontaye Carter: 21 percent | 4,703
Andy Bauman: 19 percent | 4,327
Jody Reichel: 16 percent | 3,613
Carter did not respond to a request for comment.