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Keisha Lance Bottoms’ message to Georgia voters was straightforward: vote even if no candidate feels perfect, then encourage other people to vote too. In a 2026 interview recap by 101.1 The Wiz, the former Atlanta mayor discussed voting, Georgia politics, leadership and policy on the Still Posted Aftershow.

What was Bottoms’ message to Georgia voters?

Bottoms urged people not to let disappointment in the available candidates become a reason to stay home. The recap quotes her telling first-time voters, “Put away the purity test,” and describes her comparing candidate selection to a relationship in which no option is perfect.

Her call to action was practical: vote, then call ten friends and encourage them to vote as well. The point was to treat participation as something people can spread through their own conversations, not only something decided on Election Day.

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Why did she emphasize that every vote matters?

In the interview recap, Bottoms cited an average of 21 votes per precinct separating the winner and loser in Georgia’s 2018 governor’s race. That is a figure attributed to her in the recap, not an independently verified statewide margin or a separately checked election statistic.

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She also framed the race as consequential, saying, “We’ve made too much progress to take 10 steps back,” according to the recap. Her remarks linked voting to the direction of state government and the choices that affect residents’ daily lives.

What did she say a governor can influence?

Bottoms described the governor as having a role in proposing the state budget before legislative approval and appointing members of the Board of Regents, which helps set college tuition. The recap connects those responsibilities with decisions affecting mental health services, health care, workforce housing, education and small businesses.

These are areas of influence rather than a claim that the governor acts alone: budget proposals require legislative consideration, and the recap does not analyze the limits or practical effects of each role.

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What proposals did she discuss?

Bottoms discussed proposals aimed at household costs and local flexibility. The recap reports that she would allow local governments to suspend or end grocery taxes if they could afford to do so, and that she proposed eliminating taxes on diapers, baby formula and feminine hygiene products.

  • Grocery taxes: A local option conditioned on the government’s ability to afford the change.
  • Diapers, baby formula and feminine hygiene products: A proposed tax elimination described in the recap.

The interview recap presents these as proposals, not enacted policy, and does not estimate their fiscal impact.

What advice did she give young people interested in politics?

Bottoms encouraged young people not to let fear of failure keep them from getting involved. The recap says she described losing her first race before later winning without a runoff, and quotes her saying, “We all have a story.”

She also reflected on meeting people during campaign travel: “I can put faces with the fight,” the recap quotes her as saying. Asked how a win would be celebrated, she replied, “We just gotta win.”

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About the interview and its claims

The remarks above are reported by 101.1 The Wiz in its October 2, 2026 recap of Bottoms’ appearance on the Still Posted Aftershow. The quoted wording and the 21-votes-per-precinct figure are attributed to that recap; they were not checked against an interview transcript or recording here. Its October 5 registration deadline and October 13 voting start should not be treated as current election instructions without confirmation from official Georgia election authorities.

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