New Doraville Mayor to be elected today, running again in November.

 Carol Gilman, Tom Hart & Donna Pitman

Neighbor Newspaper

Three candidates are running in the special election for Doraville mayor, set for June 21.
Carol Gilman, former councilman Thomas Hart and current councilwoman Donna Pittman want their names on the ballot.

“[A candidate] will be elected to finish the current term that was vacated by Mayor Jenkins’ death,” said City Clerk Melissa McCain. “That term will expire on Dec. 31.”
Jenkins died in February.

In order to qualify for the position of Doraville mayor, candidates had to be both a registered voter and a resident of the city for at least a year preceding the election date, according to the city charter.
Gilman, a Doraville resident since 2007, is the only new face.

Gilman has served in leadership roles throughout the metro Atlanta area and was also a member of the 2010 Livable Centers Initiative core study to revitalize the Doraville General Motors plant.  “I believe that Doraville faces a most crucial time in our city’s history: major budget issues, staffing issues, the GM plant, property values plummeting,” she said. “The position of mayor has to have someone that has serious training and leadership to take the job.”

Pittman, who was elected to the council in 2005, stepped down as acting mayor to run. Councilwoman Maria Alexander will fill the role until the election. She said her decision to run was backed by her love and passion for the city.  “Being a native of DeKalb County— raising a family and living in this city for the past 30 years—I respect our past but know what it will take to move us forward into the future,” Pittman said in an email to the Neighbor.  Pittman highlighted balancing the budget and recovering outstanding revenue as issues that needed to be tackled.

Hart represented District 2 from 2006 to 2008.
Hart said the economic state of the city is due to poor management. “The citizens are quite upset,” he said. “They are grasping at straws trying to generate some business and they think they can do it by lowering the standards of the city or upping the taxes, which is a recipe for disaster.”

McCain encouraged residents to exercise their right to vote.
“Every vote counts,” McCain said.Since the term expires in December, another election for mayor will be held in November.  The winner of that election will serve a four year term.