On December 7, 1870, William Finch and George Graham became the first black men to be elected to the Atlanta Board of Aldermen.

Alex Wan became the first Asian American member, for District 6, in the November 2009 municipal election.

[6] Grace Towns Hamilton, the first black woman elected to the Georgia House of Representatives, was instrumental in overhauling Atlanta's century-old city charter.

In 1965, Atlanta had requested that the Public Service Administration of Chicago review its government; the PSA described the system of wards and aldermen as "unmanageable".

After Hamilton tried unsuccessfully to make smaller changes in the late 1960s, she introduced a bill to establish an Atlanta Charter Commission, which passed in 1971.

Additionally, the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 meant that the Department of Justice was now filing lawsuits against cities with similar systems.

[8] A final draft was completed on December 1, 1972, and legislation adopting the new charter was signed by governor Jimmy Carter on March 16, 1973.

The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled in Jackson v. Inman, 232 Ga. 566 (1974), that the new charter was legally valid and its enabling legislation did not violate the state constitution.

[9] Hamilton still believed that at 18 members, the City Council was too large, and worked to change it as long as she was in office.

The members of the Council elect a president pro tempore each year to serve a one-year term beginning with the first meeting in January.

It is responsible for the development of policies which serve as operational standards and establishes the parameters for the administration of city government.

Resolutions usually express intent or support of various projects and enterprises or establish legislative policy of a general nature.

The standing committees of the Atlanta City Council meet to consider legislation and to make recommendations on each item.

The Atlanta Constitution described the group as "nine businessmen, four community activists, two lawyers, [a] coach, [a] housewife and [a] retired plumber".