Atlanta school board member Eshé Collins is running in the Nov. 5 special election to fill a vacant seat on the Atlanta City Council.
Collins launched her campaign for city council shortly after Keisha Sean Waites resigned last month as the Post 3 At-Large representative. Waites stepped down from the citywide seat to run for Fulton County Superior Clerk as required by state law.
The city council last month approved the special election to fill the remainder of Waites’ term that expires in January 2026. The qualifying period is June 25-27.
Collins was elected in 2021 to a third term on the school board. Her term expires in November 2025. She said she is not stepping down from the board as she vies for the council seat.
“I don’t have any intentions of resigning,” she told Rough Draft. “I am not required to resign from the board unless I actually win the seat.
“I think it’s important for the community to have representation on the school board, even if I am pursuing this opportunity,” she said.
If Collins wins the special election, she said her resignation would likely trigger a board appointment to fill out the remainder of her term.
She pointed out that when she was chair of the school board in 2022, Jason Esteves kept his seat while he campaigned for the state Senate District 6 seat. He resigned from the school board after winning the election.
After Esteves resigned, the board appointed Jessica Johnson to fill out the year remaining in his term.
This is a developing story. Please check back.