Big party demand for mayoral inauguration pushes big ask for cash

That cool quarter mill will get you 30 tickets to the inaugural ceremony and 40 tickets to the inaugural ball.

But wait, there’s more!!!

You, or more likely your company, will get “official signage” at inaugural events, your logo on the ceremony programs, recognition at the ball as a “premium sponsor” and a photo opp.

And appreciation from the mayor for chipping in on his big day.

Sponsorships descending in value get fewer perks. For instance, the $2,500 pauper’s package gets you just two tickets to the ceremony and four to the ball, but no photo opp.

You do get a couple of inaugural swag bags, though.

Credit: Screengrab

Credit: Screengrab

Now, City Hall wants you to know that no public money will be spent on this extravaganza. And that they need to rent a large place — the 7,500-seat Georgia State University Convocation Center — to give council members and other officials enough space to raise their hands and accommodate their families and friends.

“This is reflective of the administration’s commitment to accessibility and inclusiveness to be a part of the inauguration,” the mayor’s office told me. “More participation with a larger audience is a good thing.”

The events surrounding the inauguration will include service initiatives for youth organizations and senior citizens and “6,100 snack packs for under-resourced youth.”

After getting everyone sworn in, they will hold an inaugural ball. Remember, DJs and hors d’oeuvres aren’t cheap anymore.

Also, there must be a lingering sense of disappointment from Dickens’ first inauguration when he was coming off a positive COVID test and the infectious Omicron variant was raging. Those attending the inauguration had to shiver outdoors at Georgia Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium while social distancing.

The second time around will be more fun.

Inaugural balls are nothing new. First Lady Dolley Madison kicked off the first one in 1809, just five years before the Brits torched the White House.

Mayors and governors have long held inaugural parties. There are several reasons for doing so.

Credit: Ben Gray

Credit: Ben Gray

First, it’s a self-congratulatory celebration of winning a tough election. And Dickens, who’s been a non-offensive Steady Eddie, did eke out 85% of the vote to earn a second term.

Second, such bashes are a chance for those who supported the candidate or worked on the campaign to put on nice duds and revel in success while mingling with important people.

Third, it’s one more occasion for corporations and those flush with cash to demonstrate their support for a candidate. The inauguration is even better than the runup to the election because now you are certain you’re giving to a winner.

For decades, this newspaper has written about mayors and governors raising money for such occasions.

In 1999, Gov. Roy Barnes held what was termed “probably be the largest inaugural ball in the history of Georgia” at the World Congress Center. It cost $500,000, all paid for by private donations.

In 2003, Sonny Perdue, the state’s first Republican since Reconstruction, raised $2.5 million for his inaugural and transition committees.

“After his second election, BellSouth and AT&T contributed $200,000 to his bash,” my former colleague James Salzer reported. “The companies successfully fought to make it easier to compete with cable providers that legislative session.”

Gov. Nathan Deal’s committee raised $1.4 million for the Gwinnett Center gala celebrating his 2014 reelection, Salzer wrote, but wouldn’t say who contributed or how much they donated.

The same was true for Brian Kemp and his 2023 “star-studded, tux-and-gown political affair,” Salzer wrote. Not surprisingly, the AJC “found more than a dozen contributions — totaling over $426,000 — from political groups with interest in Capitol legislation and state funding.”

“Inauguration committees have no oversight by the ethics committee,” said Rick Thompson, vice chair of the state ethics commission. He surmises that those donating “feel these elected officials will be great for their jurisdiction — and their businesses.”

Credit: Facebook post

Credit: Facebook post

Edward Queen, a faculty member at Emory University Center for Ethics, said such a setup feels “unseemly.”

“It presents a challenge to the public, creating suspicion that those who have money will have the system skewed in their favor,” he told me.

Atlanta’s mayors have long held such celebrations, Shirley Franklin, the city’s first female mayor, told me. Her 2002 inauguration weekend cost more than $500,000.

“I didn’t have a ball, we had a free day at the World Congress Center, a family day,” she said, including concerts by star rappers Jermaine Dupri, Ludacris and Outkast. The latter act featured Andre 3000.

Franklin said inaugural donors “are doing it for civic purposes. In today’s world, with all the challenges, celebrating democracy is not a bad thing.”

She added, “I remember people who gave to my campaign. I don’t remember any of the sponsors to my inauguration. I never had anyone say, ‘I gave money to your inauguration.’”

That, I’m sure, is true. But in politics, the unsaid speaks loudly.