Michael Owens elected mayor of Mableton
Apr. 18—MABLETON — For the first time in 107 years, Mableton has a new mayor.
Michael Owens defeated Aaron Carman Tuesday in the runoff election to lead the city, according to unofficial results from Cobb elections.
Owens received 56% (3,396 votes) to Carman's 44% (2,703 votes).
All results are unofficial until certified by the Cobb elections board, which will meet Monday.
Owens, a Marine veteran, cybersecurity executive and former chair of the Cobb Democratic Party, becomes Mableton's first mayor since its brief existence as a city from 1912 to 1916.
Owens and Carman advanced to a runoff as the top two vote-getters in the first round of voting on March 21, when none of the four mayoral candidates won more than 50% of the vote.
Carman finished first in the March election with about 36% of the vote, followed by Owens, with 31%. In the following weeks, third- and fourth-place finishers LaTonia Long and Michael Murphy endorsed Owens.
Shortly after polls closed, Owens and supporters gathered at Mexico Lindo Restaurant in the heart of the city, on Veterans Memorial Highway. Owens led Carman as Cobb elections reported the first results from early voting.
"To go into this ahead ... I think speaks volumes about what we've been able to do over the last few weeks," Owens said. "And not just myself — myself, other candidates, the work that we've been able to do just to get out into the community, and really tell people about the urgency of voting."
Carman, a sales manager, had been open about voting against cityhood last November, and was endorsed by the group behind the movement to de-annex areas from the new city. Owens, meanwhile, voted for cityhood. While he has not explicitly opposed de-annexation, he has said he wants to focus on putting the city on solid footing and moving forward united.
De-annexation can be achieved via the state legislature or by the new mayor and council. A proposal to legislatively de-annex some areas failed in the legislative session which adjourned last month.
Owens said that since the first round of voting, the focus of residents has shifted toward the future. The race became more about "who's best positioned to lead the entire city," he said.
"I think we really talked a lot about the aspect of what being a city would mean for people in Mableton," Owens said. "I think earlier on, a lot of the discussion was around de-annexation and the energy was more focused there. I think in the last several weeks, it's been much more about, 'What are we going to be able to do for the people, for our community here in Mableton?'"
Carman watched results come in just down the street from Owens, at The Green Room Restaurant. He said his supporters "left it all out on the field," and didn't feel that his campaign could have done much differently.
"We have a great group of people here, most of these are volunteers," Carman said. "When you look across this room, people have bent over backwards, countless hours canvassing, making phone calls, doing everything, fundraising. What we've been able to accomplish as a group here without any party backing ... I'm super proud of."
Turnout on Tuesday was low — just shy of 13% of roughly 47,200 voters. But it was almost exactly the same as in March. By 10 p.m., 6,113 votes had been tallied. In the first round of voting, 6,084 ballots were cast.
"If you look at the low turnout, it's still troublesome. ... We were all sprinting as fast as we could to get the message out to everybody," Carman said.
Going forward, Carman said the new government must prove that it can perform well and deliver services if it is to convince the skeptics. Cityhood passed narrowly in November, with 53% of the vote.
Owens will now lead Cobb's newest city as it transitions from a broad swath of unincorporated south Cobb into the county's largest municipality, with more than 77,500 residents. He and the six-member council will be tasked with shepherding the transition of services from the county to the new city.
"It's exciting," Owens said. "I'm looking forward to it."
