The Atlanta City Council did not vote on Emory’s annexation at Monday’s meeting due to unresolved issues related to where DeKalb County students will attend school post-annexation. Some had expected the Council to vote on the annexation.

The Council approved two intergovernmental agreements with DeKalb County related to land use and services in Monday’s meeting. DeKalb County passed the agreements Oct. 3.

It remains unclear whether the annexation will also expand the boundaries of the Atlanta Public Schools. Nine students in the area currently attend schools in the DeKalb County School District (DCSD).

A total of $2.3 million in property tax funding for education is at stake in this case, and the decision may establish a precedent for future annexations.

Registered voters in the proposed annexed area will not be able to vote in the upcoming November election for Atlanta positions and measures, as previously speculated.

The land is set to be formally annexed on the first day of the following month after the Council and mayor approve Emory’s petition for annexation.

If the petition is approved at the next Council meeting on Nov. 6, the annexation will go into effect on Dec. 1.

Angela Jiang (19C), an Emory student who registers students to vote in Georgia, said Emory students could have made an impact on future mayoral and city council elections.

“This election in particular is fascinating, and we could have had a lot of sway in it,” Jiang said. “Atlanta is electing nine out of 15 of the possible city council positions. Essentially, we could have had a say in a huge transformation of Atlanta’s municipal government.”

The annexation into Atlanta will alter the demographics of the voting population.

Atlanta’s voting-age population was 49 percent black and 44 percent white in 2015, and the area that will be annexed is about 63 percent white, 22 percent Asian and 11 percent black, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

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Former Executive Editor | Richard Chess (20C) served as the Wheel's executive editor from March 2018 to August 2019. He also held various other positions at the Wheel including as news editor and senior editor. As news editor, Richard covered issues related to the city of Atlanta and reported that the 2016 Migos scandal cost Emory $37,500. Richard has received numerous collegiate journalism awards for his investigative and objective news coverage, including an SPJ Mark of Excellence Award in 2019.