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Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor and Georgia’s Democratic gubernatorial nominee, is lending her name and financial support to a Halloween celebration hosted by ColGay Pride, a Columbus-based LGBTQ+ organization. The event features family-friendly activities from 5 to 8 p.m., including trick-or-treating and carnival attractions, with drag performances scheduled to begin after 9 p.m. for adults only.
ColGay Pride announced it will close operations next year after 13 years of programming, citing severe financial constraints following federal funding cuts under the Trump administration. The organization stated that reduced government support, combined with insufficient private donations, made continued operations unsustainable. Bottoms’ sponsorship came in the form of a digital certificate posted to the group’s social media accounts, though the specific contribution amount remains undisclosed.
Bottoms’ involvement with drag-related programming is not new. In 2019, while serving as mayor, she publicly invited drag performer Ms. Terra Cotta Sugarbaker to host a story hour at Atlanta City Hall after Fulton County libraries canceled a scheduled drag queen story time event.
The sponsorship intensifies scrutiny on Bottoms’ record regarding gender policy, already a flashpoint in her gubernatorial campaign. During a recent debate, she stated she would have vetoed the Riley Gaines Act, legislation prohibiting biological males from competing in women’s sports, arguing such decisions should rest with athletic associations rather than state government.
Republican nominee Rick Jackson’s campaign has seized on Bottoms’ position as a defining weakness. “Keisha Bottoms and the other Democrats said they’d have vetoed the Riley Gaines Act. They won’t protect girls’ sports, but they will open the floodgates for woke ideology in our schools,” the Jackson campaign stated on social media.
Bottoms faces additional political liabilities in her race against Jackson, the Republican businessman challenging outgoing Governor Brian Kemp. The Campaign Finance Commission fined her $37,000 in 2021 for accepting contributions exceeding legal limits by over $60,000 and debt caps by $110,000. She also declined to seek reelection as Atlanta mayor in 2021 following a period when city homicides spiked 58% year-over-year.
The general election is scheduled for November 3, 2025. The Bottoms campaign declined immediate comment regarding the Halloween event sponsorship, its scope, or whether children’s attendance at gender-themed activities was appropriate.
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