Atlanta Regional Commission Elects New Chair

The board had to vote 12 separate times for a candidate to receive a sufficient amount of support to win. Ultimately, Armstrong, a citizen member of the board since 2008, came out in front.

“We have big challenges. We have a lot of things that working together we can solve and advance the region and that’s what I’m all about and that’s really why I wanted to step into this to make sure that I’m a part of that conversation and this organization is part of the conversation,” said Armstrong.

The Gwinnett County resident beat out three other candidates, including Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson. A vice president of Pope & Land Enterprise, Armstrong is only the second non-politician to head the ARC.

Leithead was the first. He opted out of running for another two-year term to concentrate on his private consulting firm, which focuses on real estate development and government affairs.

Last year, Leithead played a key role in advocating for the regional transportation referendum, which ultimately failed. Since then, in a separate role as board chair of the Cumberland Community Improvement District, he rallied support among business leaders to help relocate the Atlanta Braves from downtown Atlanta to Cobb County.