Columbus mayoral candidate Isaiah Hugley — what he says about top issues in election
Editor’s note: This is one of the Ledger-Enquirer’s profiles of candidates in the Columbus mayoral election. Early voting for the 2026 local nonpartisan election, which coincides with the Georgia primary, begins April 27, and election day is May 19.
Isaiah Hugley’s family has provided public service in Columbus for more than 40 years, he told the Ledger-Enquirer.
Hugley was the city manager for 20 years and was scheduled to retire at the end of last year before the Columbus Council voted 7-3 in May to fire him.
His wife, state Rep. Carolyn Hugley (D-Columbus), is the minority leader in the Georgia House of Representatives. His sister, Pat Hugley Green, chairs the Muscogee County School Board.
People often have the misconception that he was “born with a silver spoon in my mouth,” Hugley said.
“The fact of the matter is,” he said, “I was born very poor.”
Hugley said he grew up on welfare and food stamps before becoming a first-generation college student.
After a contentious relationship with a majority of the city council, including the August filing of a complaint alleging racial discrimination and retaliation, Hugley is asking voters to allow him to serve Columbus again — this time as mayor.
Hugley was the first Black city manager of Columbus. Now, he seeks to be the first Black candidate elected as the city’s mayor.
“I share my background because one of the things that I want to ensure as mayor is that, no matter your circumstance, no matter your zip code, no matter that your family did not have a good name, I believe that every person in every zip code should have an opportunity to succeed,” he said.
The Ledger-Enquirer sat down with Hugley to discuss some of his top policy issues and initiatives he would propose if elected mayor.
How would Isaiah Hugley lead differently as mayor than as city manager?
The positions of city manager and mayor are very different, Hugley said.
“Two different roles, two different responsibilities and one unwavering commitment to the citizens of Columbus, GA,” he said.
The city manager is the chief operating officer, Hugley said, leading the day-to-day operations. He was responsible for managing the budget and an organization with over 3,000 employees, he said. He also managed $3 billion in capital projects for roads and other infrastructure.
As mayor, he would become “the person with the vision,” Hugley said. This would involve looking toward the future and ensuring that Columbus is in the best position possible, he said.
If the state is the best in the country to do business, Hugley said, then Columbus could be the best city in the country. His role, as mayor, would be to bring people together to achieve that vision, he said.
“I’m talking about poor people, businesses and public-private partnerships,” Hugley said. “The mayor has to lead that vision and pull those partnerships together to position the city to be the best city in Georgia.”
Biggest opportunities for economic growth in Columbus
Hugley plans to work closely with economic development organization Choose Columbus to create job opportunities, he said, and will not limit that effort to any specific industry.
“When we create those good-paying job opportunities for our citizens, no matter the category, we have an opportunity to do a number of things,” he said.
Hugley plans to recruit industries and ensure Columbus is competitive in all categories to bring more jobs to Muscogee County, he said.
“We can no longer allow Opelika, Auburn and West Point to outpace us when it comes to recruiting economic development opportunities and businesses for the people of Columbus, GA,” Hugley said.
Current infrastructure projects, like the ongoing project to build a new bridge over the railroad crossing on Buena Vista Road, will help achieve this goal, Hugley said.
Despite the inconvenience and problems the construction is causing some businesses and schools now, he said, it will be better in the long run.
“It was an inconvenience before that construction because that train was there multiple times a day, sitting there, blocking traffic and causing people to be late for appointments and work,” he said.
After all the infrastructure projects in that area are complete, Hugley said, it will help make that area of town competitive.
“It’s going to enhance and improve the quality of life,” he said. “It’s just a framework for something bigger, better and greater.”
As mayor, Hugley said, he would support upgrading Second Avenue where drivers exit J.R. Allen Parkway.
Hugley said he wants to follow through with building a hotel attached to the Columbus Convention & Trade Center. This would include a pedestrian walk from the Marriott to the Trade Center, he said, so visitors don’t have to exit the hotel in inclement weather.
He looks forward to seeing Oglethorpe Bridge, near Synovus Park, being replaced, he said.
“Some people may notice that the lights on the bridge are broken,” Hugley said. “We haven’t repaired those lights because we are preparing to replace the bridge. We want to make it something unique, different, as a gateway into Columbus, Georgia.”
Hugley said he would advocate for adding nine holes to the Oxbow Creek Golf Course, to make it an 18-hole course as part of an economic development plan. He also wants South Commons to be developed into retail and commercial space.
“The biggest economic opportunity for us in South Columbus, in modern times, is that baseball stadium that’s going to bring $400 million of economic development,” he said. “We’re talking jobs, hotels, restaurants, retail and commercial. We’re talking space where people can go and take their families and have an enjoyable time in south Columbus.’
Impact of Georgia General Assembly ending or cutting property taxes
Having an experienced leader will be important if the Georgia General Assembly cuts or eliminates property taxes, Hugley said.
“Experience really matters,” he said. “I served as city manager through tough economic times. The downturn in the economy, inflation in 2008, I’m the guy. I’m the city manager who brought us through the 2008 difficult times.”
Hugley said he also was the city manager who brought the Columbus through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’ve been in tough times,” he said, “and I’ve been in good times.”
Hugley refers to the state legislature’s proposed plan for doing away with property taxes as a “threat.”
“If you put it on the ballot, everybody’s going to vote for it,” he said. “And when they vote for it, we may be voting against our own interest in Columbus, Georgia, because you would take revenue away that we use for public safety and government services.”
To make up for the loss of revenue from eliminating property taxes, Hugley said, the total sales tax in Columbus may have to be increased to around 11%. At 9% (4% to state, the rest local), Columbus already is tied for highest in Georgia, as of last April.
“Sales tax is a regressive tax,” he said. “While 65% of those who own property won’t pay property tax anymore, the 40% who don’t own property are going to get the increase because their sales tax is going to go from 9% to 11%. So, it’s a regressive tax that’s going to hit those in need harder.”
Increasing the sales tax also wouldn’t be an equalizer for Columbus, Hugley said, because the city borders Alabama. The high sales tax would drive more people to do their shopping in Opelika or Auburn, he said.
“If it happens,” Hugley said, “it’s going to require someone with experience who knows what they’re doing, who has the relationships in Columbus, across Georgia, across this nation to keep Columbus competitive.”
Addressing the Columbus finance department investigation and EEOC complaint
Politics and personal issues were factors, Hugley said, in the investigation into the city’s finance department that led to two arrests and his being fired as city manager. To move Columbus forward, he said, people must put “progress over politics.”
“And I would,” he said. “You heard an internal auditor say $45 million was missing — missing. That internal auditor lied. External auditors … verified that $45 million that she referenced was all in the bank. Go check the record and the auditor.”
For 35 years, Hugley said, the city had clean, unmodified audits.
“Mauldin and Jenkins, one of the top 100 accounting firms in this nation, audit 770 governments annually,” he said. “And out of 770 governments that they audit annually, only 180 of those have clean, unmodified audits with no findings and no misstatements. Out of the 180, only 25 can say they’ve had clean, unmodified audits for 35 consecutive years. That’s Columbus, Georgia.”
There were challenges during the pandemic, Hugley said, but there were challenges nationwide. The external auditors did say that there was $2.5 million in revenue dating back to 2016 that had not been collected.
“Our job was to go out there and get those account receivables,” he said. “And that’s what we worked to do.”
When it comes to his firing and filing a charge of discriminatio and retaliation with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Hugley said he had to do it to clear his name.
“No, I didn’t file a lawsuit,” he said. “I filed an EEOC complaint because I love my good name. And all I want in an EEOC complaint is a good name. And if we want to resolve that, with my good name, it could be done on one piece of paper.”
The Columbus Council could pass a resolution to fix this, Hugley said, and he would move on.
“I have a 4-year-old grandson,” he said. “His name is Isaiah Hugley III. When he sees my campaign signs, he tells people, ‘That’s my name on that sign.’ I want my grandson to know that your granddad had a good name and make sure to keep that good name as he goes forward.”
New initiative for Columbus
In 2017, Frank Lumpkin Jr., then 19, created a plan for I-14 to run through Columbus. If elected mayor, Hugley said, he would work with Lumpkin, who is still advocating for the project, to bring this idea to fruition.
“I-185 is said to be the largest cul-de-sac in the state of Georgia,” Hugley said. “It comes and it dead-ends in Fort Benning. And you’ve got to come back out to go anywhere.”
A city without an interstate highway going through it is at a disadvantage, Hugley said. This is why cities like Auburn, Opelika and West Point are doing better when it comes to economic development, he said.
As mayor, Hugley said, he also would bring civility back to the city’s government.
“None of us arrive until all of us arrive,” he said. “And we are going to respect each other.”
