Atlanta Mayor on Georgia’s Extraordinary Political Shift

I JUST WANT TO ASK YOU YOUR REACTION.

YOU MUST BE THRILLED TODAY.

YEAH, I'M FULL OF SO MANY EMOTIONS, AND THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME TODAY ON THIS DAY AFTER.

THIS SEEMED LIKE THIS DAY WOULD NEVER COME.

WE KNEW HOW IMPORTANT IT WAS TO SHOW UP TO VOTE IN NOVEMBER.

OBVIOUSLY, THE WORK WAS NOT DONE, AND FOR IT TO ALL COME DOWN TO GEORGIA AND ALL THAT GEORGIA HAS MEANT FOR CIVIL RIGHTS AND HUMAN RIGHTS ACROSS THE GLOBE, IT-- IT IS JUST-- IT'S MOVING BEYOND DESCRIPTION.

Amanpour: SO LET'S JUST TALK A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT THAT, BECAUSE IT IS, AND THERE'S SO MUCH HISTORY IN YOUR STATE, FROM REVEREND MARTIN LUTHER KING, TO JOHN LEWIS, AND AS YOU MENTIONED, ALL THE CIVIL RIGHTS THAT CAME OUT OF YOUR STATE.

AND, YET, IT IS THE FIRST TIME A BLACK AMERICAN BECOMES A SENATOR FROM GEORGIA.

WHAT WAS IT THAT MADE THIS HAPPEN AT THIS TIME?

THERE WERE SO MANY THINGS THAT HAVE BROUGHT US TO THIS MOMENT, AND CERTAINLY WHAT WE SAW HAPPEN ACROSS AMERICA OVER THE SUMMER REALLY WAS A RALLYING CRY FOR EVERYONE WHO WANTED TO SEE CHANGE IN THIS COUNTRY.

REMEMBER, ON MAY 29, WHEN THE PROTESTS ERUPTED IN ATLANTA IN THE WAKE OF THE MURDER OF GEORGE FLOYD, JUST IMPLORING PEOPLE IF YOU WANT CHANGE IN AMERICA, GO AND VOTE.

AND PEOPLE WANTED CHANGE IN THIS COUNTRY, AND ESPECIALLY IN GEORGIA WITH THE ATTENTION THAT THE RUNOFF ELECTIONS RECEIVED, AND UNDERSTANDING HOW IMPORTANT IT IS NOT JUST TO THE COUNTRY BUT TO THE ENTIRE WORLD THAT AMERICA-- THAT THE SOUL OF AMERICA BE RESTORED, AS PRESIDENT-ELECT JOE BIDEN HAS SO DESCRIBED IT.

IT IS-- IT'S-- IT'S CERTAINLY AN INFLECTION POINT FOR US ACROSS THIS COUNTRY BECAUSE WE NOW SEE THAT WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE SIMPLY BY SHOWING UP TO VOTE, AND THAT'S WHAT JOHN LEWIS IMPLORED OF US AND SO MANY OTHERS.