1949 Atlanta mayoral election

The Democratic primary for the 1949 Atlanta mayoral election was held on September 7, 1949, concurrently with Democratic primaries for the board of aldermen and school board, and election to the Atlanta City Executive Committee (the municipal chapter of the Democratic Party).Georgia Digital Library of Atlanta daily world. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1932-current, September 06, 1949, Election Edition, Image 5 https://gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu/lccn/sn82015425/1949-09-06/ed-1/seq-5/ 1528-6142Georgia Digital Library of Atlanta daily world. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1932-current, September 06, 1949, Election Edition, Image 2 https://gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu/lccn/sn82015425/1949-09-06/ed-1/seq-2/#words=Atlanta+Councilman 1528-6142 Nomination in the primary and the runoff was tantamount to election. Incumbent William Hartsfield won re-election in the primary by 47 votes. African American voters It was the first primary for the board since the 1946 federal court decision in King v. Chapman, which ended the white primary in Georgia and implemented the earlier U.S. Supreme Court decision in Smith v. Allwright, allowing African Americans to vote in primaries and elections for the first time.Georgia Digital Library of Atlanta daily world. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1932-current, September 08, 1949, City Edition, Image 1 https://gahistoricnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu/lccn/sn82015425/1949-09-08/ed-1/seq-1/ 1528-6142 African Americans had previously been turned away from the polls in the 1945 Democratic municipal primary. The Atlanta Negro Voters League was formed months before the election to help organize African American first-time voters and endorse candidates for municipal offices. Both Hartsfield and Brown sought African American support in the primary. Candidates William B. Hartsfield, incumbent mayor Charlie Brown, Fulton County commissioner Bill Todd Joe Salem Results 1949 Atlanta mayoral primary William B. Hartsfield Nonpartisan candidate 20,074 50.12 Charlie Brown Nonpartisan candidate 17,253 43.07 Bill Todd Nonpartisan candidate 1,617 4.04 Joe Salem Nonpartisan candidate 1,111 2.77 40,055 100 References Category:1949 United States mayoral elections Category:1949 Georgia (U.S. state) elections Category:Mayoral elections in Atlanta