When Power Shifts: The Real Consequences of Hattie Portis-Jones’ Win for Fairburn’s Future By Dr. Samantha L. Hudson, MSW, DPA — Councilwoman, City of Fairburn

Fairburn didn’t just elect a new mayor — it reinforced a system designed to keep younger families, new homeowners, and working-class residents on the sidelines. Hattie Portis-Jones’ win wasn’t a victory for progress; it was a consolidation of the old guard’s control over a city that’s changing faster than its leaders can handle.

This isn’t about political party. It’s about power — who has it, who’s kept from it, and who’s finally starting to wake up.

The Quiet War Against Fairburn’s Younger Families

Let’s call this what it is: a coordinated effort to suppress the voices of Fairburn’s growing younger population — the teachers, nurses, warehouse workers, and first-time homeowners who make up the majority of our community but hold the minority of political power.

For years, this “inner circle” has thrived by keeping people disengaged. Meetings are scheduled at inconvenient hours, notices are buried in fine print, and decisions that shape our future happen behind closed doors.

Meanwhile, younger families are juggling two jobs, kids in overcrowded schools, and rising costs — leaving little time to fight City Hall. That’s not an accident. The system counts on fatigue, frustration, and the illusion that one vote or one voice doesn’t matter. But it does. It always has.

The Clique’s Grip on City Hall

Portis-Jones’ administration isn’t ushering in reform; it’s re-cementing the same power network that’s suffocated progress in this town for years. It’s the same cast of insiders protecting the same financial interests, hiding behind the same talk of “unity” and “decorum.”

This clique operates like a gatekeeper’s club — access controlled, information rationed, and advancement limited to those who play nice. They’ve built an entire system around intimidation, procedural trickery, and public-relations spin.

Younger residents, especially those raising children here, are the real threat to that structure — because they see through the performance. They want results, not politics. They want roads fixed, parks maintained, and schools supported, not another round of self-congratulating ribbon cuttings.

The Rising Majority

Here’s the truth no one in that circle wants to admit: Fairburn’s demographics are shifting. Younger families are now the city’s largest and fastest-growing population. They’re buying homes, opening businesses, and showing up to city events. They’re building a new Fairburn in real time.

The problem? Too many of them still aren’t voting — not because they don’t care, but because they’re disillusioned. They’ve watched elections decided by a handful of insiders who trade favors while preaching “civility.”

That’s why civic advocacy is no longer optional — it’s survival.

Civic Advocacy: The Path Forward

If the old guard has a chokehold, the antidote is participation. Real, organized, strategic participation. Here’s what we must do, together:

• Mobilize the younger vote. Show up in every election — municipal, county, and state. These seats control zoning, policing, utilities, and housing. That’s your pocketbook and your property value.

• Host neighborhood voter drives. Apartment complexes, daycare centers, youth events — bring the polls to where people live and work.

• Educate first-time voters. Many new residents don’t even know their local voting precincts. Civic groups and faith organizations must step up to bridge that gap.

• Demand accountability. Don’t wait until election season to care. Read agendas. Watch meetings. Ask hard questions. Flood public comment sessions. Make them uncomfortable with your presence — that’s how democracy breathes.

  
  

The Future They Fear

The reason the clique clings so tightly to power is because they see what’s coming: a Fairburn that’s younger, more diverse, better educated, and unafraid to challenge authority.

They fear a city where transparency is the rule, not the exception — where government works for the people instead of hiding from them.

They fear the day when families who actually live the struggle start making the decisions about where the money goes, what the priorities are, and who gets held accountable.

That day is coming. And no amount of intimidation can stop it.

My Promise

As your councilwoman, I will continue to speak truth to power — whether the room likes it or not. I will keep fighting for families, not factions. I will keep exposing injustice, documenting the facts, and pushing for policies rooted in fairness, not favoritism.

Fairburn doesn’t belong to a clique. It belongs to the people who build it, fund it, and live in it.

It belongs to you.

Dr. Samantha L. Hudson, MSW, DPA

Councilwoman, City of Fairburn

Founder, Vision Center of Hope, Inc.