Mara Zuniga Launches Bid for Athens-Clarke County Mayoral Seat
Mara Zuniga is stepping back into the political arena with a renewed campaign for the mayoral position of Athens-Clarke County. After an unsuccessful attempt in 2022 against the current mayor, Kelly Girtz, Zuniga is prepared to vie for leadership once again.
She recently took part in a public debate, organized by Drew Abney and Russell Edwards from Athchat, where she was joined by fellow candidates LaKeisha Gantt and Tim Denson. The debate focused on pressing local issues such as housing affordability, population growth, and fiscal policies.
Zuniga’s introduction at the debate was notable for its bilingual nature, as she addressed the audience in both English and Spanish. Speaking to WUGA, she explained, “I just wanted to let Athens know hey, I know that I’m an American, but I also have this heritage and I want to speak to the people that speak Spanish and are bilingual as well, to know that they can identify with me.”
A significant part of Zuniga’s platform focuses on making housing more affordable. She advocates for revising zoning codes and building infill housing in areas with existing infrastructure. By doing so, she aims to mitigate the impact of gentrification, which often displaces long-standing residents.
“If we start off with those things and not worry about those neighborhoods that have those histories that they want to keep their neighborhoods intact, let’s just keep them intact for now,” Zuniga stated. “Let’s go the other areas where we can build these different types of housing and we can start there.”
