Atlanta News First to host gubernatorial town hall debate between Keisha Lance Bottoms, Rick Jackson
The one-hour event at Assembly Atlanta will air across all Georgia Gray Media stations.
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Atlanta News First announced today that it will host an exclusive, live gubernatorial town hall debate between Rick Jackson (R) and Keisha Lance Bottoms (D) on Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, at 8 p.m.
The one-hour debate will broadcast live from Assembly Studios, Gray Media’s state-of-the-art studio production facility in Atlanta. The event will follow a modified town hall format, giving undecided local voters the unique opportunity to ask questions directly to the candidates about the most pressing issues facing the community.
It is the only debate confirmed so far between the two candidates ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
The live event will be moderated by Atlanta News First anchor Rick Folbaum, host of the station’s premier political and public affairs program, On the Record.
“Atlanta News First is dedicated to providing our community with direct access to the leaders shaping our future,” said Erik Schrader, vice president and general manager of Atlanta News First.
“By bringing undecided voters face-to-face with the candidates in a town hall format, we are ensuring that the questions that matter most to families in metro Atlanta are answered directly on our stage,” Schrader said. “We are proud to leverage the world-class production capabilities of Assembly Studios to deliver this vital civic broadcast.”
To provide comprehensive coverage, Atlanta News First will also produce dedicated 30-minute pre- and post-debate programs. “On the Record: Live,” hosted by Doug Reardon, will serve as the pre-debate show beginning at 7:30 p.m. and the post-debate analysis airing immediately following the debate at 9 p.m. Both programs will be available for all participating Georgia Gray stations to air or stream.
In Atlanta, viewers can watch the debate live on Atlanta News First (WANF) or stream it live on ANF+ on Roku, Amazon Fire, and Apple TV or the Atlanta News First mobile app.
Bottoms has challenged Jackson to participate in six debates, saying she has accepted five additional forums beyond the Oct. 6 town hall, including a proposed nationally televised CNN matchup. None of those events have been confirmed by Jackson’s campaign.
“I don’t know about Slick Rick Jackson, but I’ve accepted six debates,” Bottoms said in a social media video. “So now the ball is in his court.”
Jackson campaign spokesman Garrison Douglas criticized Bottoms’ request in a statement.
“Only the flailing campaign of a failed politician would spend more than six weeks ducking a debate, then suddenly demand six of them after Georgians begin to learn the truth about her disastrous record as mayor of Atlanta,” Douglas said. “The fact is Keisha Lance Bottoms has become desperate and can’t talk her way out of what she did to Atlanta.”
Political analyst Ben Taylor said the Oct. 6 town hall is currently voters’ only confirmed chance to see the candidates face to face before Election Day.
“Given the extra time that Rick Jackson has had to be a candidate for high office, you would imagine that he probably has prepared and gotten some practice,” Taylor said.
A recent InsiderAdvantage poll showed Jackson and Bottoms separated by less than a percentage point among likely voters. Taylor said he expects the debate could become personal quickly.
The gubernatorial town hall debate is part of Atlanta News First’s robust election coverage. Just two nights later, on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026, Atlanta News First will also host and broadcast the highly anticipated, exclusive Georgia U.S. Senate debate between incumbent U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff (D) and challenger U.S. Rep. Mike Collins (R) live from Assembly Atlanta.
Additional details regarding voter participation, streaming access, and local broadcast listings for both events will be announced closer to the dates.
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