The right answer is the first one: He was elected mayor of Atlanta in 1973. Maynard Jackson (1938-2003) was, in fact, the first African American major of a large Southern city, and he served for three, non-consecutive, terms. The decision, which he took in 1968, to run for the U.S. Senate would become crucial in his future and successful political career. One year later he became vice mayor of Atlanta, and in 1973 he was elected mayor. Some of Mayor Jackson's achievements were the granting of more municipal contracts to local minority businesses and the construction of new terminal at Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport.