Atlanta, GA
Meet the Democratic Socialist elected to Atlanta City Council
Kelsea Bond won a landslide victory in the District 2 race while championing Beltline rail, dense affordable housing and workers’ rights.
32-year-old Midtown resident Kelsea Bond is the first Democratic Socialist elected to serve on Atlanta City Council.
Atlanta City Council will soon include the first Democratic Socialist ever elected to the legislative body.
Kelsea Bond, a 32-year-old Midtown resident, won by a landslide in a crowded race to fill the Atlanta City Council District 2 seat that became open when Amir Farokhi resigned from the position earlier this year.
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(From left) Seth Roseman, Kelsea Bond and Shehza Anjum look over a map before heading out to canvas a Southeast Atlanta neighborhood Saturday, July 24, 2021, against the Public Safety Training Center that has been proposed on the site of the old Atlanta Prison Farm in Southeast Atlanta. (Ben Gray for the AJC)
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Kelsea Bond, a candidate in the open Atlanta City Council District 2 race, takes part in a forum hosted by the Old Fourth Ward Neighborhood Association Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025 in Atlanta. The forum was moderated by association president Tom Boyle and Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Riley Bunch . (Daniel Varnado/For the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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Riley Bunch is a reporter on the local government team at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution covering Atlanta City Hall. She covers the mayor and Atlanta City Council while also keeping an eye on the city’s diverse neighborhoods.