Georgia gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms talks with farmers during Albany campaign stop

ALBANY – The former mayor of Atlanta and 2026 Georgia’s gubernatorial candidate made a stop in Albany Tuesday as part of her “Standing Pp for Georgia Tour.”

Keisha Lance Bottoms visited with black farmers at the Albany office for the Federation of Southern Cooperatives, a nonprofit cooperative that supports black farmers and landowners. She then spent her evening hosting a meet-and-greet with community members at the Charles Driskell Community Center, for which more than 100 people registered to attend. 

“I want the people of Albany to know that I won’t be a stranger to Albany and that as a leader … I will always remember how important Albany is to our state,” Bottoms said. ”Albany has also faced many of the challenges …  that this state has faced, from hurricanes to historic flooding. So listening to people directly about what we’re doing well, what we can do better, and what they want and need in a leader is going to help shape our campaign.”

Bottoms served as the 60th mayor of Atlanta from 2018 to 2022. She forwent a second term and instead served in the Biden administration. Bottoms launched her campaign for governor in May. If elated, she’d be the state’s first black and first female governor. 

Bottoms said that though she was born and raised in Fulton County, she recognizes that agribusiness is the most significant industry in the state of Georgia, and the Albany area plays a huge role in that industry. Bottoms said she wanted to meet with farmers, especially underserved black farmers, to hear how the state can better support them.

“It’s about listening to our farmers on how this state can be a better partner,” the candidate said. “We know that our farmers have faced historical challenges, and now on top of that, (there are) the tariffs, the challenges with making sure that there is federal funding in place to address needs.”

Cornelius Key, the director of Albany’s FSC chapter, said Bottoms’ campaign asked to visit the FSC office. He said it’s important for candidates on both sides of the aisle to hear from farmers. 

“We represent all farmers,” Key said of the FSC. 

Bottoms spoke with a group of eight farmers from southwest Georgia counties in a round-table discussion. She let the farmers do most of the talking as she took notes on their needs from the state. 

Key said farmers are dependent on federal funding, but a slew of funding programs have been cut back by the Trump administration, including Biden-era climate-smart initiatives. He said black farmers have had challenges getting loans from local USDA Farm Service Agencies, not qualifying for loans that have low interest rates and being forced to operate on a lot of credit.

“You have to have cash flow in order to show payback, but we can’t do that with the prices that we have now,” Key said. “What you can do if you become governor is help boost some of these other funding programs.” 

Pastor Shirley Cody, a fourth-generation Clay County farmer, said Georgia farmers need the federal and state government to work together to secure funding and filter it down to smaller, rural counties. 

Cody told Bottoms that she’s worried about black land loss. Cody’s family farm was established as the Days Crossroad Community in the 1930s. She said this community saw multiple black families farming and operating small businesses in it. Now, she said her family’s farm is “the only black farm left” in Clay County. She said she’s seen at least nine black-owned farms disappear as families struggle to sustain their land amid growing prices and the inability to receive financial support. 

“In order to keep the land going, we have to have funds because you run into different disasters … you might need help with irrigation … or getting work equipment,” Cody said. “These are barriers.”

Cody said she has 14 grandchildren to which she and her brother would one day like to pass their land. She said she and her brother are looking into starting to raise cattle or turn to forestry to increase profits. 

“We’re working on getting our land up to standards so we can pass down wealth to the children, but right now we haven’t got enough money to really develop the land,” she said. “There’s just not enough to sustain the farm for the next generation.” 

Krystal Dukes Harris, a Randolph County farmer and small business owner, said she’s faced uncertainty in federal programs that she said would help her farming operations. One of these is the Farm-to-School program, which she said she applied for before the program was canceled.

The Trump administration canceled the federal Local Foods for Schools program, which connected Georgia farmers with nearby school districts. It became an important tool in improving student nutrition and boosting local economies.

After pressure from legislators and school districts, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins announced that the USDA would resurrect one of the Farm to School grant programs on Sept. 10. Through the Patrick Leahy Farm to School grants, the USDA will invest up to $18 million in farm to school projects. 

Harris said she plans to try to apply again. She also brought up needs for veterans to Bottoms. 

Harris said she’d like to see Georgia implement more tax exemptions or incentives for veterans when it comes to home or business ownership. 

“We’re not getting that incentive to come to Georgia for property taxes, like those other states – Alabama, South Carolina,” Harris said. “I think it would bring a lot of people to Georgia.”

Bottoms has traveled to Savannah, Warner Robins, Macon, Liberty County, Augusta and Dekalb County on her campaign tour, and she said she’s heard many of the same needs across the state. She said if she is elected governor, she’d focus on how the state can better match federal funding for farmers and small businesses. 

“So what we’re hearing directly from people in the agricultural business is that access to capital and federal cuts have really had a tremendous impact on the industry,” Bottoms said. “How can we be a better partner with the state and perhaps match those federal funds? Also, addressing the issues of the tariffs: Tariffs are impacting every sector of the economy. How can we stand in the gap as farmers are facing those challenges?”

Cody said she was feeling hopeful after hearing from Bottoms. 

“We need something new and something fresh,” Cody said.