Will Cheshire Legislation Hurt Councilman’s Reelection Chances?

June 5th, 2013

The Atlanta City Council this week rejected a controversial measure seeking to remove the adult businesses from Cheshire Bridge Road.

Leading to the vote, the sponsor of the legislation, Councilman Alex Wan, drew a tremendous amount of criticism for trying to change the personality of the iconic street.

Will that opposition translate into reelection issues for Wan?

Probably not, says retired Georgia State University professor Harvey Newman, an expert on Atlanta city government. He expects Wan to cruise to victory in November, based on an incumbency advantage and the district’s make-up.

“He’s got a district with a large homeowner population and they applaud his efforts. He certainly stuck his neck out in an election year on their behalf,” said Newman.

The measure’s fiercest opponents included businesses owners, real estate developers, and some in the LGBT community. At various stages of the redevelopment campaign, it got personal. Wan, who is the council’s only openly gay member, was called a moral-crusader and a hypocrite.

“Alex Wan has his own personal agenda. We feel the ordinance is anti-business, anti-black American, and anti-gay,” said Michael Morrison of the adult store Inserection before this week’s vote.

Wan says it was tough not taking the attacks personally, but maintains he has no regrets and feels confident going into November.

“At the end of the day, the communities are overwhelmingly in support of redevelopment along Cheshire as far as all the measures and metrics I’ve seen.”

Wan has deep roots in the neighborhoods of District 6, which includes Morningside/Lenox Park, Virginia Highland, and Piedmont Heights.

In 2009, after incumbent Anne Fauver decided against running for reelection, Wan faced off with five opponents and it took a runoff for him to win. In this year’s race, no challengers to Wan have so far emerged.