Between 1802 and 1804, a portion of western Georgia was carved out to create theMississippi Territory, which eventually became the U.S. states ofAlabama andMississippi. Georgia declared itssecession from the Union on January 19, 1861, joining the ranks of the original sevenConfederate States. After theCivil War, it was the last state to be readmitted to the Union on July 15, 1870.[10] In the late 19th century, during the post-Reconstruction period, Georgia's economy underwent significant changes, driven by a coalition of influential politicians, business leaders, and journalists, notablyHenry W. Grady, who promoted the "New South" ideology focused on reconciliation andindustrialization.[11]
In the mid-20th century, several notable figures from Georgia, includingMartin Luther King Jr., emerged as key leaders in thecivil rights movement.[10] Additionally,Jimmy Carter was born, lived and raised in the state. Atlanta was chosen to host the1996 Summer Olympics, celebrating the centennial of the modernOlympic Games. Since 1945, Georgia has experienced significant population and economic expansion, aligning with the largerSun Belt trend. Between 2007 and 2008, 14 ofGeorgia's counties were listed among the 100 fastest-growing counties in the United States.[12]
Georgia is defined by a diversity of landscapes, flora, and fauna. The northern part of the state features theBlue Ridge Mountains, which are part of the broaderAppalachian Mountain range. Moving south, thePiedmont plateau stretches from thefoothills of the Blue Ridge to theFall Line, anescarpment that marks the transition to theCoastal Plain in the southern region of the state. The highest elevation in the state isBrasstown Bald, reaching 4,784 feet (1,458 m) above sea level, while the lowest point is at theAtlantic Ocean. Except for some elevated areas in the Blue Ridge, Georgia predominantly experiences ahumid subtropical climate. Among the states located entirely east of the Mississippi River, Georgia ranks as the largest in terms ofland area.[13]
Georgia's first constitution was ratified in February 1777. Georgia was the 10th state to ratify the Articles of Confederation on July 24, 1778,[16] and was the 4th state to ratify theUnited States Constitution on January 2, 1788.[17]
In early 1861, as theAmerican Civil War commenced, Georgia chose to leave theUnion to join theConfederacy. Support for secession from the Union enjoyed a slight majority among the state's delegates,[19] and the state ultimately became one of several majormilitary theaters during the Civil War.
Major battles took place atChickamauga,Kennesaw Mountain, andAtlanta. In December 1864, a large swath of the state from Atlanta toSavannah, was destroyed during GeneralWilliam Tecumseh Sherman'sMarch to the Sea, during which 18,253 Georgian soldiers were killed, representing roughly one of every five then in service of the Confederacy.[20] One of the most notorious Civil War sites in the state was theAndersonville Prison, where nearly 13,000 Unionprisoners of war died because of inhumane conditions and ill treatment. Following the war, the camp's commanderHenry Wirz was sentenced to death forwar crimes and hanged, making him the highest-ranking Confederate official to be executed.[21]
Georgia did not re-enter the Union until July 15, 1870, as the last of the former Confederate states to be re-admitted.[22] Federal troops would continue to be stationed in the state until the end of theReconstruction era in 1877.[23] With white Democrats having regained power in the state legislature, they passed apoll tax that year whichdisenfranchised many poor black (and some white) people, preventing them from registering.[24] In 1908, the state established awhite primary; with the only competitive contests within the Democratic Party, it was another way to exclude black people from politics.[25] They constituted 46.7% of the state's population in 1900, but the proportion of Georgia's population that was African American dropped thereafter to 28%, primarily due to tens of thousands leaving the state during theGreat Migration.[26] In 1910, a secret meeting was held onJekyll Island, off Georgia's Atlantic coast, to plan for the creation of an American central banking system. The decisions made at the meeting resulted in the passing of theFederal Reserve Act of 1913.[27][28]
According to theEqual Justice Initiative's 2015 report on lynching in the United States (1877–1950), Georgia had 531 deaths, the second-highest total of these extralegal executions of any state in the South. The overwhelming number of victims were black and male.[29] Many of the killings were committed by thewhite supremacist hate group theKu Klux Klan (KKK), whose second iteration was formed at Georgia'sStone Mountain byWilliam Joseph Simmons on November 25, 1915.[30] The Klan's revival was spurned in part by the 1913 murder of 13-year-old Mary Phagan and the lynching two years later of her convicted killer, Jewish pencil factory supervisor andB'nai B'rith Atlanta chapter presidentLeo Frank. The affair led to the creation of theAnti-Defamation League, which successfully lobbied for Frank to be posthumously pardoned in 1986.[31] Political disfranchisement persisted through the mid-1960s, until after Congress passed theVoting Rights Act of 1965.
By the 1960s, the proportion of African Americans in Georgia had declined to 28% of the state's population, after waves of migration to the North and some immigration by whites.[26] With their voting power diminished, it took some years for African Americans to win a state-wide office.Julian Bond, a civil rights leader, was elected to the Georgia's House of Representatives in 1965, and served multiple terms there and subsequently in Georgia's State Senate.
Atlanta mayorIvan Allen Jr. testified beforeCongress in support of the Civil Rights Act, and GovernorCarl Sanders worked with theKennedy administration charged with ensuring the state's compliance.Ralph McGill, editor and syndicated columnist at theAtlanta Constitution, wrote supportively of civil rights movement. In 1970,Jimmy Carter, who was recently elected the state's governor, declared in his inaugural address that the era of racial segregation had ended. In 1972, Georgians electedAndrew Young to Congress as the first African American Congressman since theReconstruction era.
Late 20th and early 21st centuries
In 1980, construction was completed on an expansion of what is now namedHartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL). The busiest and most efficient airport in the world, it accommodates more than a hundred million passengers annually.[34] Employing more than 60,000 people, the airport became a major engine for economic growth.[34] With the advantages of cheap real estate, low taxes,right-to-work laws and a regulatory environment limiting government interference, the Atlanta metropolitan area became a national center of finance, insurance, technology, manufacturing, real estate, logistics, and transportation companies, as well as the film, convention, and trade show businesses. As a testament to the city's growing international profile, in 1990 theInternational Olympic Committee selectedAtlanta as the site of the1996 Summer Olympics. Taking advantage of Atlanta's status as a transportation hub, in 1991,UPS established its headquarters in the suburb ofSandy Springs. In 1992, construction finished onBank of America Plaza, the tallest building in the U.S. outside of New York City or Chicago.
On February 19, 2003, Georgia adopted its currentstate flag, resembling the state's first official flag. In 2024, it was announced that Atlanta would host multiple games during the2026 FIFA World Cup, which further substantiated the economic investment and growth in the city and state.
The border then takes a sharp turn around the tip ofRabun County, atlatitude 35°N, though from this point it diverges slightly south (due to inaccuracies in the original survey, conducted in 1818).[36] This northern border was originally the Georgia and North Carolina border all the way to theMississippi River, untilTennessee was divided fromNorth Carolina, and the Yazoo companies induced the legislature of Georgia to pass an act, approved by the governor in 1795, to sell the greater part of Georgia's territory presently comprisingAlabama andMississippi.[37]
The state's western border runs in a straight line south-southeastward from a point southwest ofChattanooga, to meet theChattahoochee River nearWest Point. It continues downriver to the point where it joins theFlint River (the confluence of the two forming Florida'sApalachicola River); the southern border goes almost due east and very slightly south, in a straight line to theSt. Mary's River, which then forms the remainder of the boundary back to the ocean.[38]
An 1818 survey erroneously placed Georgia's border with Tennessee one mile (1.6 km) south of the intended location of the 35th parallel north.[36] State legislatorsstill dispute this placement, as correction of this inaccuracy would allow Georgia access to water from theTennessee River.[39]
The state of Georgia has approximately 250 tree species and 58 protected plants. Georgia's native trees includered cedar, a variety ofpines,oaks,hollies,cypress,sweetgum, scaly-bark and whitehickories, andsabal palmetto. East Georgia is in the subtropical coniferous forest biome and conifer species as other broadleaf evergreen flora make up the majority of the southern and coastal regions.Yellow jasmine andmountain laurel make up just a few of the flowering shrubs in the state.
Reptiles include theeastern diamondback,copperhead, andcottonmouth snakes as well as alligators; amphibians includesalamanders,frogs andtoads. There are about 79 species of reptile and 63 amphibians known to live in Georgia. The Argentine black and white tegu is currently an invasive species in Georgia. It poses a problem to local wildlife by chasing down and killing many native species and dominating habitats.[41]
The majority of the state is primarily ahumid subtropical climate. Hot and humid summers are typical, except at the highest elevations. The entire state, including theNorth Georgia mountains, receives moderate to heavy precipitation, which varies from 45 inches (1,100 mm) in central Georgia[44] to approximately 75 inches (1,900 mm) around the northeast part of the state.[45] The degree to which the weather of a certain region of Georgia is subtropical depends on the latitude, its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean orGulf of Mexico, and the elevation. The latter factor is felt chiefly in the mountainous areas of the northern part of the state, which are farther away from the ocean and can be 4,500 feet (1,400 m) above sea level. The USDA planthardiness zones for Georgia range from zone 6b (no colder than −5 °F (−21 °C)) in theBlue Ridge Mountains to zone 8b (no colder than 15 °F (−9 °C) ) along theAtlantic coast and Florida border.[46]
Image of March1993 Storm of the Century covering the length of the east coast; the outline of Georgia is discernible in the center of the image
The highest temperature ever recorded is 112 °F (44 °C) inLouisville on July 24, 1952,[47] while the lowest is −17 °F (−27 °C) in northernFloyd County on January 27, 1940.[48] Georgia is one of the leading states in frequency oftornadoes, though they are rarely stronger thanEF1. Although tornadoes striking the city are very rare,[49] an EF2 tornado[49] hit downtown Atlanta on March 14, 2008, causing moderate to severe damage to various buildings. With a coastline on the Atlantic Ocean, Georgia is also vulnerable tohurricanes, although direct hurricane strikes were rare during the 20th century. Georgia often is affected by hurricanes that strike theFlorida Panhandle, weaken over land, and bring strongtropical storm winds and heavy rain to the interior, a recent example beingHurricane Michael,[50] as well as hurricanes that come close to the Georgia coastline, brushing the coast on their way north without ever making landfall.Hurricane Matthew of 2016 andHurricane Dorian of 2019 did just that.
Monthly average daily high and low temperatures for major Georgia cities
City
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Athens
51/11 33/1
56/13 35/2
65/18 42/6
73/23 49/9
80/27 58/14
87/31 65/18
90/32 69/21
88/31 68/20
82/28 63/17
73/23 51/11
63/17 42/6
54/12 35/2
Atlanta
52/11 34/1
57/14 36/2
65/18 44/7
73/23 50/10
80/27 60/16
86/30 67/19
89/32 71/22
88/31 70/21
82/28 64/18
73/23 53/12
63/17 44/7
55/13 36/2
Augusta
56/13 33/1
61/16 36/4
69/21 42/6
77/25 48/9
84/29 57/14
90/32 65/18
92/33 70/21
90/32 68/20
85/29 62/17
76/24 50/10
68/20 41/5
59/15 35/2
Columbus
57/14 37/3
62/17 39/4
69/21 46/8
76/24 52/11
83/28 61/16
90/32 69/21
92/33 72/22
91/32 72/22
86/30 66/19
77/25 54/12
68/20 46/8
59/15 39/4
Macon
57/14 34/1
61/16 37/3
68/20 44/7
76/24 50/10
83/28 59/15
90/32 67/19
92/33 70/21
90/32 70/21
85/29 64/18
77/25 51/11
68/20 42/6
59/15 36/2
Savannah
60/16 38/3
64/18 41/5
71/22 48/9
78/26 53/12
84/29 61/16
90/32 68/20
92/33 72/22
90/32 71/22
86/30 67/19
78/26 56/13
70/21 47/8
63/17 40/4
Temperatures are given in °F/°C format, with highs on top of lows.[51]
Due to anthropogenicclimate change, the climate of Georgia is warming. This is already causing major disruption, for example, from sea level rise (Georgia is more vulnerable to it than many other states because its land is sinking) and further warming will increase it.[52][53][54][55]
Atlanta, located in north-central Georgia at theEastern Continental Divide, has been Georgia'scapital city since 1868. It is the most populous city in Georgia, with a 2020 U.S. census population of just over 498,000.[56] The state has seventeen cities with populations over 50,000, based on official 2020 U.S. census data.[56]
Along with the rest of the Southeast, Georgia's population continues to grow rapidly, with primary gains concentrated in urban areas. The U.S. Census Bureau listsfourteen metropolitan areas in the state. The population of the Atlanta metropolitan area added 1.23 million people (24%) between 2000 and 2010, and Atlanta rose in rank from the eleventh-largest metropolitan area in the United States to theninth-largest.[57] TheAtlanta metropolitan area is the cultural and economic center of theSoutheast; its official population in 2020 was over 6 million, or 57% of Georgia's total population.[58]
Map of counties in Georgia by racial plurality, per the 2020 U.S. census
Legend
Non-Hispanic White
30–40%
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
80–90%
90%+
Black or African American
40–50%
50–60%
60–70%
70–80%
Population density by census tract in the state of Georgia, 2020
TheUnited States Census Bureau reported Georgia's official population to be 10,711,908 as of the2020 United States census. This was an increase of 1,024,255, or 10.57% over the2010 figure of 9,687,653 residents.[62] The state made up 3.14% of the total US population in 2010 and 3.23% in 2020.
As of 2010[update], the number ofillegal immigrants living in Georgia more than doubled to 480,000 from January 2000 to January 2009, according to a federal report. That gave Georgia the greatest percentage increase among the 10 states with the biggest undocumented immigrant populations during those years.[63] Georgia has bannedsanctuary cities.[64]
In the1980 census, 1,584,303 people from Georgia claimedEnglish ancestry out of a total state population of 3,994,817, making them 40% of the state, and the largest ethnic group at the time.[70] Today, many of these same people claim they are of "American" ancestry, as do many ofScots-Irish descent; however, their families have lived in the state for so long, in many cases since the colonial period, that they choose to identify simply as having "American" ancestry or do not in fact know their own ancestry.[71][72][73][74]
Historically, about half of Georgia's population was composed of African Americans who, before theAmerican Civil War, were almost exclusively enslaved. TheGreat Migration of hundreds of thousands of blacks from the rural South to the industrial North from 1914 to 1970 reduced the African American population.[75] However, the proportion of Georgia's population that is Black has increased since 1990 and today the state is third in percent of the total population that is African American (afterMississippi andLouisiana) and third in numeric Black population after New York and Florida.
Georgia had the second-fastest-growing Asian population growth in the U.S. from 1990 to 2000, more than doubling in size during the ten-year period.[76] Indian people and Chinese people are the largest Asian groups in Georgia.[77] Georgia also has a sizeable Hispanic population. Many are of Mexican descent.[78]
Georgia is the state with the third-lowest percentage of older people (65 or older), at 12.8 percent (as of 2015[update]).[79] As of 2011[update], 58.8% of Georgia's population younger than 1 were minorities (meaning they had at least one parent who was not non-Hispanic white) compared to other states like California with 75.1%, Texas with 69.8%, and New York with 55.6%.[80]
The colonial settlement of large numbers ofScottish American,English American andScotch-Irish Americans in the mountains and Piedmont, and coastal settlement by someEnglish Americans and African Americans, have strongly influenced the state's culture in food, language and music. The concentration of African slaves repeatedly "imported" to coastal areas in the 18th century from rice-growing regions of West Africa led to the development ofGullah-Geechee language and culture in the Low Country among African Americans. They share a unique heritage in which many African traditions of food, religion and culture were retained. In the creolization of Southern culture, their foodways became an integral part of Low Country cooking.[81][82] Sephardic Jews, French-speaking Swiss people, Moravians, Irish convicts, Piedmont Italians and Russian people immigrated to the state during the colonial era.[83]
As of 2021[update],85.62% (8,711,102) of Georgia residents age5 and older spoke English at home as aprimary language, while7.82% (795,646) spoke Spanish, and6.55% (666,849) spoke languages other than English or Spanish at home, with the most common of which were Vietnamese, Chinese, and Korean. In total,14.38% (1,462,495) of Georgia's population age5 and older spoke amother language other than English.[86]
According to thePew Research Center, the composition of religious affiliation in Georgia was 67% Protestant, 9% Catholic, 1% Mormon, 1% Jewish, 0.5% Muslim, 0.5% Buddhist, and 0.5% Hindu.Atheists,deists, agnostics, and other unaffiliated people make up 18% of the population.[88] Overall, Christianity was the dominant religion in the state, as part of theBible Belt.
By the 2022Public Religion Research Institute's study, 71% of the population were Christian; throughout its Christian population, 60% were Protestant and 8% were Catholic. Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons collectively made up 3% of other Christians according to the study.[93]Judaism,Islam,Buddhism, andHinduism collectively formed 4% of the state's non-Christian population;New Age spirituality was 2% of the religious population. Approximately 23% of the state wasirreligious.[93]
Native American tribes
Tribes which historically lived in what is now Georgia include theMuscogee (including theHitchiti subgroup), theCherokee, theOconi, theGuale, theYamasee and theApalachee.[94] Other tribes which at various times lived in or migrated through Georgia include theApalachicola, theChatot, theYuchi, the Chiaha, theChickasaw, the Okmulgee, theShawnee and theTimucua.[95] Today there are nofederally recognized tribes in Georgia, but there are threestate-recognized tribes. Many inhabitants of Georgia identify as being Native American alone (32,151 people in 2010 census and 50,618 in 2020) or Native American in combination with one or more other races (51,873 people in 2010 census and 163,423 in 2020).[69] Many Georgians also reported belonging to various Native American tribes in 2010 census, the largest of which was the Cherokee (21,525 people). Other tribes reported in Georgia in 2010 included for example the Muscogee (2,370 people), the Choctaw (1,419), the Sioux (1,027), the Seminole (664) and more.[96]
Georgia's 2018 totalgross state product was $602 billion.[97] For years Georgia as a state has had the highestcredit rating byStandard & Poor's (AAA) and is one of only 15 states with a AAA rating.[98] If Georgia were a stand-alone country, it would be the 28th-largest economy in the world, based on data from 2005.[99] As of 2025, Georgia has been noted by Area Development Magazine as the Top State for Doing Business for 12 consecutive years.[100]
Atlanta boasts the world'sbusiest airport, as measured both by passenger traffic and by aircraft traffic.[102][103] In addition, thePort of Savannah is the fourth-largestseaport and fastest-growing container seaport in North America, importing and exporting a total of 2.3 millionTEUs per year.[104]
Atlanta has a significant effect on the state of Georgia, the Southeastern United States, and beyond. It has been the site of growth in finance, insurance, technology, manufacturing, real estate,service, logistics, transportation, film, communications,convention and trade show businesses and industries, while tourism is important to the economy.Atlanta is aglobal city, also calledworld city or sometimesalpha city orworld center, as a city generally considered to be an important node in the global economic system.
For the five years through November 2017, Georgia has been ranked the top state (number1) in the nation to do business, and has been recognized as number1 for business and labor climate in the nation, number1 in business climate in the nation, number1 in the nation in workforce training and as having a "Best in Class" state economic development agency.[105][106]
In 2016, Georgia had a median annual income per person of between $50,000 and $59,999, which is in inflation-adjusted dollars for 2016. The U.S. median annual income for the entire nation is $57,617. This lies within the range of Georgia's median annual income.[107]
A 2024 study listed Georgia in the top 20 of states for an affordablecost of living.[108] However, studies for 2025 have shown Georgia is the leading state for personal loan searches, with nearly twice the volume of most other states.[109]
Manufacturing
While many textile jobs moved overseas, there is still a textile industry located around the cities ofRome,Columbus,Augusta,Macon and along the I-75 corridor between Atlanta andChattanooga, Tennessee. Historically it started along the fall line in the Piedmont, where factories were powered by waterfalls and rivers. It includes the towns ofCartersville,Calhoun,Ringgold andDalton.[110]
Industrial products include textiles andapparel, transportation equipment, food processing, paper products,chemicals and products, and electric equipment.
Agriculture
A cotton field in southern Georgia
Widespread farms produce peanuts, corn, andsoybeans across middle and south Georgia. The state is the number one producer ofpecans in the world, thanks toNaomi Chapman Woodroof regarding peanut breeding, with the region aroundAlbany insouthwest Georgia being the center of Georgia's pecan production. Georgia produces the most chickens forpoultry of any state;[112]Gainesville, in northeast Georgia, touts itself as the "Poultry Capital of the World". Georgia is in the top fiveblueberry producers in the United States.[113]
Georgia's electricity generation and consumption are among the highest in the United States, with natural gas being the primary electrical generation fuel, followed by coal. The state also has two nuclear power facilities,Plant Hatch andPlant Vogtle, which contribute almost one fourth of Georgia's electricity generation, and two additional nuclear reactors are being built at Vogtle as of 2022.[citation needed] In 2013, the generation mix was 39% gas, 35% coal, 23% nuclear, 3% hydro and other renewable sources. The leading area of energy consumption is the industrial sector because Georgia "is a leader in the energy-intensive wood and paper products industry".[121] Solar generated energy is becoming more in use with solar energy generators currently installed ranking Georgia 15th in the country in installed solar capacity. In 2013, $189 million was invested in Georgia to install solar for home, business and utility use representing a 795% increase over the previous year.[122]
Major products in the mineral industry include a variety of clays, stones, sands and the claypalygorskite, known as attapulgite.
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport moves over 650,000 tons of cargo annually through three cargo complexes (2 million square feet or 200,000 square meters of floor space). It has nearby cold storage for perishables; it is the only airport in the Southeast with USDA-approved cold-treatment capabilities. Delta Air Lines also offers an on-airport refrigeration facility for perishable cargo, and a 250-acre Foreign Trade Zone is located at the airport.[123]
Georgia is a major railway hub, has the most extensive rail system in the Southeast, and has the service of two Class I railroads, CSX and Norfolk Southern, plus 24 short-line railroads. Georgia is ranked the No. 3 state in the nation for rail accessibility. Rail shipments include intermodal, bulk, automotive and every other type of shipment.[123]
Georgia has an extensive interstate highway system including 1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers) of interstate highway and 20,000 miles (32,000 kilometers) of federal and state highways that facilitate the efficient movement of more than $620 billion of cargo by truck each year. Georgia's six interstates connect to 80 percent of the U.S. population within a two-day truck drive. More than $14 billion in funding has been approved[when?] for new roadway infrastructure.[123]
Georgia has aprogressive income tax structure with six brackets of stateincome tax rates that range from 1% to 6%. In 2009, Georgians paid 9% of their income in state and local taxes, compared to the U.S. average of 9.8% of income.[133] This ranks Georgia 25th among the states for total state and local tax burden.[133] The statesales tax in Georgia is 4%[134] with additional percentages added through local options (e.g.special-purpose local-option sales tax or SPLOST), but there is no sales tax onprescription drugs, certain medical devices, or food items for home consumption.[135]
Thestate legislature may allow municipalities to institute local sales taxes and special local taxes, such as the 2% SPLOST tax and the 1% sales tax forMARTA serviced counties.Excise taxes are levied on alcohol, tobacco, andmotor fuel. Owners ofreal property in Georgia payproperty tax to their county. All taxes are collected by theGeorgia Department of Revenue and then properly distributed according to any agreements that each county has with its cities.
Housing
In 2025, all states were ranked on housing affordability and future housing construction. Out of 50 states, Georgia was in the top 10 for housing purchase affordability and was in the top seven that accounted for more than 50% of all 2024 construction permits to build homes. Georgia is one of the top ten states that are "striking a balance between both affordability and robust homebuilding efforts",Realtor.com reported.[136]
A number of notable musicians in various genres of popular music are from Georgia. Among them areRay Charles (whose many hits include "Georgia on My Mind", now the official state song), andGladys Knight (known for her Georgia-themed song, "Midnight Train to Georgia").
The city ofAthens sparked an influential rock music scene in the 1980s and 1990s. Among the groups achieving their initial prominence there wereR.E.M.,Widespread Panic, andthe B-52's.
Since the 1990s, various hip-hop and R&B musicians have included top-selling artists such asOutkast,Usher,Ludacris,TLC,B.o.B., andCiara. Atlanta is mentioned in a number of these artists' tracks, such as Usher's "A-Town Down" reference in his 2004 hit "Yeah!" (which also features Atlanta artistsLil Jon and Ludacris), Ludacris' "Welcome to Atlanta", Outkast's album "ATLiens", andB.o.B.'s multiple references toDecatur, Georgia, as in his hit song "Strange Clouds".
The1996 Summer Olympics took place in Atlanta. The stadium that was built to host various Olympic events was converted toTurner Field, home of the Atlanta Braves through 2016. Atlanta will serve as a host city for the2026 FIFA World Cup.[141]
Georgia county and city public school systems are administered by school boards with members elected at the local level. As of 2013[update], all but 19 of 181 boards are elected fromsingle-member districts. Residents and activist groups inFayette County sued the board of commissioners and school board for maintaining an election system based onat-large voting, which tended to increase the power of the majority and effectively prevented minority participation on elected local boards for nearly 200 years.[146] A change to single-member districts has resulted in the African-American minority being able to elect representatives of its choice.
Georgia high schools (grades nine through twelve) are required to administer astandardized,multiple choiceEnd of Course Test, or EOCT, in each of eight core subjects:algebra,geometry,U.S. history, economics,biology,physical science, ninth-grade literature andcomposition, andAmerican literature. The official purpose of the tests is to assess "specific content knowledge and skills". Although a minimum test score is not required for the student to receivecredit in the course, completion of the test is mandatory. The EOCT score accounts for 15% of a student's grade in the course.[147] TheGeorgia Milestone evaluation is taken by public school students in the state.[148] In 2020, because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Georgia State BOE agreed to state superintendent Richard Woods' proposal to change the weight of the EOCT test to only count for 0.01% of the Student's course grade. This change is currently only in effect for the 2020–21 school year.[149]
Georgia has 85 public colleges, universities, and technical colleges in addition to more than 45 private institutes of higher learning. Among Georgia's public universities is theflagshipresearch university, theUniversity of Georgia, founded in 1785 as the country's oldest state-chartered university and the birthplace of the American system of public higher education.[150] TheUniversity System of Georgia is the presiding body over public post-secondary education in the state. The System includes 26 institutions of higher learning and is governed by theGeorgia Board of Regents. Georgia's workforce of more than 6.3 million is constantly refreshed by the growing number of people who move there along with the 90,000 graduates from the universities, colleges and technical colleges across the state, including the highly rankedUniversity of Georgia,Georgia Institute of Technology,Georgia State University,Kennesaw State University,Spelman College, andEmory University.[106]
TheHOPE Scholarship, funded by thestate lottery, is available to all Georgia residents who have graduated from high school or earned aGeneral Educational Development certificate. The student must maintain a 3.0 or higher grade point average and attend a public college or university in the state.[151]
TheGeorgia Historical Society, an independent educational and research institution, has a research center located inSavannah. The research center's library and archives hold the oldest collection of materials related to Georgia history in the nation.
WSB-AM in Atlanta was the first licensed radio station in the southeastern United States, signing on in 1922.Georgia Public Broadcasting has been in service since 1984[155][156] and broadcasts daily on several FM stations across the state. The Atlanta area is additionally served byWABE public radio.
WSB-TV in Atlanta is the state's oldest television station, having begun operations in 1948. WSB the first television service in Georgia, and the South.[157]
As with all other U.S. states and the federal government, Georgia's government is based on theseparation of legislative, executive, and judicial power.[158] Executive authority in the state rests with thegovernor, currentlyBrian Kemp (Republican). Both theGovernor of Georgia andlieutenant governor are elected on separate ballots to four-year terms of office. Unlike the federal government, but like many other U.S. States, most of the executive officials who comprise the governor's cabinet are elected by the citizens of Georgia rather than appointed by the governor.
Legislative authority resides in theGeneral Assembly, composed of theSenate andHouse of Representatives. The Lieutenant Governorpresides over the Senate, while members of the House of Representatives select their own Speaker. TheGeorgia Constitution mandates a maximum of 56 senators, elected from single-member districts, and a minimum of 180 representatives, apportioned among representative districts (which sometimes results in more than one representative per district); there are currently 56 senators and 180 representatives. The term of office for senators and representatives is two years.[159] The laws enacted by the General Assembly are codified in theOfficial Code of Georgia Annotated.
State judicial authority rests with the stateSupreme Court andCourt of Appeals, which have statewide authority.[160] In addition, there are smaller courts which have more limited geographical jurisdiction, including Superior Courts, State Courts, Juvenile Courts, Magistrate Courts and Probate Courts. Justices of the Supreme Court and judges of the Court of Appeals are elected statewide by the citizens in non-partisan elections to six-year terms. Judges for the smaller courts are elected to four-year terms by the state's citizens who live within that court's jurisdiction.
Georgia consists of 159counties, second only to Texas, with 254.[161] Georgia had 161 counties until the end of 1931, whenMilton andCampbell were merged into the existingFulton. Some counties have been named for prominent figures in both American and Georgian history, and many bear names with Native American origin. Counties in Georgia have their own elected legislative branch, usually called the Board of Commissioners, which usually also has executive authority in the county.[162] Several counties have asole commissioner form of government, with legislative and executive authority vested in a single person. Georgia is the only state with current Sole Commissioner counties. Georgia's Constitution provides all counties and cities with "home rule" authority. The county commissions have considerable power to pass legislation within their county, as a municipality would.
Georgia recognizes all local units of government as cities, so every incorporated town is legally a city. Georgia does not provide fortownships orindependent cities, though there have been bills proposed in the Legislature to provide for townships;[163] it does allowconsolidated city-county governments by localreferendum. All of Georgia's second-tier cities exceptSavannah have now formed consolidated city-county governments by referendum:Columbus (in 1970),Athens (1990),Augusta (1995), andMacon (2012). (Augusta and Athens have excluded one or more small, incorporated towns within their consolidated boundaries; Columbus and Macon eventually absorbed all smaller incorporated entities within their consolidated boundaries.) The small town ofCusseta adopted a consolidated city-county government after it merged with unincorporatedChattahoochee County in 2003. Three years later, in 2006, the town ofGeorgetown consolidated with the rest ofQuitman County.
Until 1964, Georgia's state government had the longest unbroken record of single-party dominance, by theDemocratic Party, of any state in the Union. This record was established largely due to thedisenfranchisement of most blacks and many poor whites by the state in its constitution and laws in the early 20th century. Some elements, such as requiring payment of poll taxes and passing literacy tests, prevented blacks from registering to vote; their exclusion from the political system lasted into the 1960s and reduced the Republican Party to a non-competitive status in the early 20th century.[166]
White Democrats regained power after Reconstruction due in part to the efforts of some using intimidation and violence, but this method came into disrepute.[167] In 1900, shortly before Georgia adopted a disfranchising constitutional amendment in 1908, blacks comprised 47% of the state's population.[26]
The whites dealt with this problem of potential political power by the 1908 amendment, which in practice disenfranchised blacks and poor whites, nearly half of the state population. It required that any male at least 21 years of age wanting to register to vote must also be of good character and able to pass a test on citizenship, be able to read and write provisions of the U.S. and Georgia constitutions, or own at least forty acres of land or $500 in property. Any Georgian who had fought in any war from theAmerican Revolution through theSpanish–American War was exempted from these additional qualifications. More importantly, any Georgian descended from a veteran of any of these wars also was exempted. Because, by 1908, many white Georgia males were grandsons of veterans or owned the required property, the exemption and the property requirement basically allowed only well-to-do whites to vote. The qualifications of good character, citizenship knowledge, literacy (all determined subjectively by white registrars), and property ownership were used to disqualify most blacks and poor whites, preventing them from registering to vote. The voter rolls dropped dramatically.[167][168] In the early 20th century,Progressives promoted electoral reform and reducing the power of ward bosses to clean up politics. Their additional rules, such as theeight box law, continued to effectively close out people who were illiterate.[25] White one-party rule was solidified.
For more than 130 years, from 1872 to 2003, Georgians nominated and elected only white Democratic governors, and white Democrats held the majority of seats in the General Assembly.[169] Most of the Democrats elected throughout these years wereSouthern Democrats, who were fiscally and socially conservative by national standards.[170][171] This voting pattern continued after the segregationist period.[172]
Legal segregation was ended by passage of federal legislation in the 1960s. According to the 1960 census, the proportion of Georgia's population that was African American was 28%; hundreds of thousands of blacks had left the state in theGreat Migration to the North and Midwest. New white residents arrived through migration and immigration. Following support from the national Democratic Party for the civil rights movement and especially civil rights legislation of 1964 and 1965, most African-American voters, as well as other minority voters, have largely supported the Democratic Party in Georgia.[173]
In 2002, incumbent moderate Democratic GovernorRoy Barnes was defeated by RepublicanSonny Perdue, a state legislator and former Democrat. While Democrats retained control of the State House, they lost their majority in the Senate when four Democrats switched parties. They lost the House in the 2004 election. Republicans then controlled all three partisan elements of the state government.
Even before 2002, the state had become increasingly supportive of Republicans in Presidential elections. It has supported a Democrat for president only four times since 1960. In 1976 and 1980, native sonJimmy Carter carried the state; in 1992, the former Arkansas governorBill Clinton narrowly won the state; and in 2020,Joe Biden narrowly carried the state. Generally, Republicans were strongest in the predominantly white suburban (especially the Atlanta suburbs) and rural portions of the state.[174] Many of these areas were represented by conservative Democrats in the state legislature well into the 21st century. One of the most conservative of these was U.S. CongressmanLarry McDonald, former head of theJohn Birch Society, who died when theSoviet Union shot downKAL 007 nearSakhalin Island. Democratic candidates have tended to win a higher percentage of the vote in the areas where black voters are most numerous,[174] as well as in the cities among liberal urban populations (especially Atlanta and Athens), and the central and southwestern portion of the state.
The ascendancy of the Republican Party in Georgia and in the South in general resulted in GeorgiaU.S. House of Representatives memberNewt Gingrich being elected asSpeaker of the House following the election of a Republican majority in the House in 1994. Gingrich served as Speaker until 1999, when he resigned in the aftermath of the loss of House seats held by members of the GOP. Gingrich mounted an unsuccessful bid for president in the 2012 election, but withdrew after winning only the South Carolina and Georgia primaries.
In 2008, DemocratJim Martin ran against incumbent Republican SenatorSaxby Chambliss. Chambliss failed to acquire the necessary 50 percent of votes due to a Libertarian Party candidate receiving the remainder of votes. In therunoff election held on December 2, 2008, Chambliss became the second Georgia Republican to be reelected to the U.S. Senate.
In the 2018 elections, thegovernorship remained under control by a Republican (by 54,723 votes against a Democrat,Stacey Abrams), Republicans lost eight seats in theGeorgia House of Representatives (winning 106), while Democrats gained ten (winning 74), Republicans lost two seats in theGeorgia Senate (winning 35 seats), while Democrats gained two seats (winning 21), and five DemocratU.S. Representatives were elected with Republicans winning nine seats (one winning with just 419 votes over the Democratic challenger, and one seat being lost).[175][176][177]
In the three presidential elections up to and including 2016, the Republican candidate has won Georgia by approximately five to eight points over the Democratic nominee, at least once for each election being narrower than margins recorded in some states that have flipped within that timeframe, such asMichigan,Ohio andWisconsin. This trend led to the state narrowly electing DemocratJoe Biden for president in 2020, and it coming to be regarded as aswing state.[178][179]
In a 2020 study, Georgia was ranked as 49th on the "Cost of Voting Index" with only Texas ranking higher.[180] In 2022, Georgia swung substantially back to the right towards Republicans with incumbent Republican GovernorBrian Kemp winning reelection by 7.5% over DemocratStacey Abrams with a raw vote margin of over 300,000 votes in the2022 Georgia gubernatorial election; the largest amount since the early 2000s, and every other Republican statewide getting elected by a 5–10% margin of victory.[citation needed]
During the 1960s and 1970s, Georgia made significant changes in civil rights and governance. As in many other states, its legislature had not reapportioned congressional districts according to population from 1931 to after the 1960 census. Problems of malapportionment in the state legislature, where rural districts had outsize power in relation to urban districts, such as Atlanta's, were corrected after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling inWesberry v. Sanders (1964). The court ruled that congressional districts had to be reapportioned to have essentially equal populations.
A related case,Reynolds v. Sims (1964), required state legislatures to end their use of geographical districts or counties in favor of "one man, one vote"; that is, districts based upon approximately equal populations, to be reviewed and changed as necessary after each census. These changes resulted in residents of Atlanta and other urban areas gaining political power in Georgia in proportion to their populations.[181] From the mid-1960s, the voting electorate increased after African Americans' rights to vote were enforced under civil rights law.
Economic growth through this period was dominated by Atlanta and its region. It was a bedrock of the emerging "New South". From the late 20th century, Atlanta attracted headquarters and relocated workers of national companies, becoming more diverse, liberal and cosmopolitan than many areas of the state.
In the 21st century, many conservative Democrats, including former U.S. Senator and governorZell Miller, decided to support Republicans. The state's then-socially conservative bent resulted in wide support for measures such as restrictions on abortion. In 2004, a state constitutional amendment banningsame-sex marriages was approved by 76% of voters.[182] However, after the United States Supreme Court issued its ruling inObergefell v. Hodges, all Georgia counties came into full compliance, recognizing the rights of same-sex couples to marry in the state.[183]
Inpresidential elections, Georgia voted solely Democratic in every election from1900 to1960. In1964, it was one of only a handful of states to vote for RepublicanBarry Goldwater over DemocratLyndon B. Johnson. In1968, it did not vote for either of the two parties, but rather theAmerican Independent Party and its nominee,Alabama GovernorGeorge Wallace. In1972, the state returned to Republicans as part of a landslide victory forRichard Nixon. In1976 and1980, it voted for Democrat and former Georgia governorJimmy Carter. The state returned to Republicans in1984 and1988, before going Democratic once again in1992. For every election between that year and2020, Georgia voted heavily Republican, in line with many of its neighbors in theDeep South. In2020, it voted Democratic for the first time in 28 years, carried byJoe Biden by 11,779 votes in his national defeat of incumbent RepublicanDonald Trump.
Though Republicans had continued to regularly win state and federal elections, in the years prior to 2020, their margins of victory tended to decrease, and that year, many election forecasts ranked Georgia as aswing state.[184] Concurrent with the 2020 presidential election were elections for both of Georgia's United States Senate seats; when no candidate in either race received a majority of the vote, both went to run-offs, which DemocratsJon Ossoff andRaphael Warnock won. Ossoff is the state's first Jewish senator, and Warnock is the state's first Black senator. The Democratic wins were attributed to the rapiddiversification of the suburbs of Atlanta[185] and increased turnout of younger African-American voters, particularly around the suburbs of Atlanta and inSavannah.[186][187][188]
Transportation in Georgia is overseen by theGeorgia Department of Transportation, a part of the executive branch of thestate government. Georgia's majorInterstate Highways areI-20,I-75,I-85, andI-95. On March 18, 1998, the Georgia House of Representatives passed a resolution naming the portion of Interstate 75, which runs from the Chattahoochee River northward to the Tennessee state line theLarry McDonald Memorial Highway. Larry McDonald, a Democratic member of the House of Representatives, had been onKorean Air Lines Flight 007 when it was shot down by the Soviets on September 1, 1983.
Georgia's primary commercial airport is Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), the world's busiest airport.[195] In addition to Hartsfield–Jackson, there are eight other airports serving major commercial traffic in Georgia.Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport is the second-busiest airport in the state as measured by passengers served, and is the only additional international airport. Other commercial airports (ranked in order of passengers served) are located inAugusta,Columbus,Albany,Macon,Brunswick,Valdosta, andAthens.[196]
TheGeorgia Ports Authority manages two deepwater seaports, at Savannah and Brunswick, and two river ports, at Bainbridge and Columbus. ThePort of Savannah is a major U.S. seaport on the Atlantic coast.
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) is the principalrapid transit system in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Formed in 1971 as strictly a bus system, MARTA operates a network ofbus routes linked to a rapid transit system consisting of 48 miles (77 km) ofrail track with 38train stations. MARTA operates almost exclusively inFulton andDeKalb counties, with bus service to two destinations inCobb county and theCumberland Transfer Center next to theCumberland Mall, and a single rail station inClayton County at Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport. MARTA also operates a separateparatransit service for disabled customers. As of 2009[update], the average total daily ridership for the system (bus and rail) was 482,500 passengers.[197]
The state has 151 general hospitals, more than 15,000 doctors and almost 6,000 dentists.[198] The state is ranked forty-first in the percentage of residents who engage in regular exercise.[199]
^Grem, Darren (January 20, 2004)."Henry W. Grady (1850–1889)".New Georgia Encyclopedia.Archived from the original on September 3, 2019. RetrievedSeptember 27, 2019.
^Hill, LaVerne W.; Hill, Melvin B. (September 29, 2020) [August 12, 2002]."Georgia Constitution".New Georgia Encyclopedia. RetrievedFebruary 6, 2024.
^Remini, Robert (1998) [1977]. "The Creek War: Victory".Andrew Jackson: The Course of American Empire, 1767–1821. Vol. 1. Johns Hopkins University Press.ISBN0801859115.
^"Georgia Overview".uga.edu. Athens, Georgia: Natural Resources Spatial Analysis Lab, University of Georgia.Archived from the original on August 15, 2021. RetrievedAugust 15, 2021.
^Kanell, Michael E. (November 16, 2009)."Number of veterans, October". Atlanta, Georgia: Atlanta Constitution-Journal. pp. A6.Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. RetrievedAugust 18, 2021. quoting the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
^Holcomb, Justin S. (November 20, 2002)."Presbyterian Church in America". New Georgia Encyclopedia.Archived from the original on July 5, 2014. RetrievedJuly 27, 2014.
^Weiszer, Marc (September 29, 2014)."Georgia's Kublanow balances faith and football". Savannah Now.Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. RetrievedOctober 5, 2014.Kublanow wasn't just born Jewish, he was raised and had his bar mitzvah while attending an orthodox Chabad synagogue. His mother, Shelly Kublanow Rosenblatt, will attend Friday night and Saturday morning services at the Chabad House in Athens and then head to Sanford Stadium in the afternoon to watch Kublanow and his linemates clear the way for Todd Gurley.
^Sollish, Ari (October 11, 2007)."Chabad Course Explores Israel's Spiritual Side". Crown Heights Info.Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. RetrievedOctober 5, 2014.ATLANTA, GA—A new six-part adult-education course from Chabad-Lubavitch's Rohr Jewish Learning Institute will explore the spiritual connection between the Jewish people and the land of Israel starting at the end of October. Unlike courses that focus on the history or the culture of Israel, "The Land & the Spirit: Why We All Care About Israel" will explore the mystery of the deep connection between Jews everywhere and that small patch of land in the Middle East.
^Analysis, US Department of Commerce, BEA, Bureau of Economic."Bureau of Economic Analysis"(PDF).www.bea.gov.Archived(PDF) from the original on May 1, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^"State credit ratings".ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia.Archived from the original on December 30, 2015. RetrievedJuly 22, 2016.
^"Did You Know?".Georgia Blueberry Commission. Georgia Department of Agriculture.Archived from the original on January 1, 2015. RetrievedJanuary 11, 2015.
^Walljasper, Matt (January 24, 2017). "What's filming in Atlanta now? Black Panther, I, Tonya, Stranger Things, and why MCU = ATL". Atlanta. Archived from the original on January 26, 2017. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
^"AJC circulation continues to fall".Atlanta Business Chronicle. American City Business Journals. April 26, 2010.Archived from the original on April 30, 2010. RetrievedFebruary 7, 2012.
^"Georgia".Encyclopædia Britannica.Archived from the original on March 31, 2017. RetrievedMarch 31, 2017.
^Stations, Georgia Public Broadcasting, archived fromthe original on July 26, 2025, retrievedAugust 16, 2025
^About, Georgia Public Radio, archived fromthe original on May 3, 2007, retrievedMay 19, 2007
^McDougald, Michael H. (April 25, 2013)."Television Broadcasting".New Georgia Encyclopedia. RetrievedJune 23, 2023.
^"Living in Georgia",Culture, archived fromthe original on February 12, 2007, retrievedMay 16, 2007
^"Physical exercise",Health (graph), Statemaster, archived fromthe original on May 13, 2013, retrievedMay 16, 2007
^Tieck, Sarah (2013).Georgia. Minneapolis, MN: ABDO Publishing Company. p. 22.ISBN978-1-61783-348-9.
^"Blake Van Leer, Educator, Dead; Georgia Tech President Was 62—Barred Cancellation of Bowl Game Over Negro Hailed by Faculty Basketball Game Off".The New York Times. January 24, 1956.
London, Bonnie Bullard. (2005)Georgia and the American Experience Atlanta, Georgia: Clairmont PressISBN1-56733-100-9. A middle school textbook.
Peirce, Neal R.The Deep South States of America: People, Politics, and Power in the Seven Deep South States (1974). Information on politics and economics 1960–72.ISBN0-393-05496-9.
Williams, David and Christopher C. Meyers.Georgia: A Brief History Macon: Mercer University Press, 2012.
.png)
.svg)
.jpg)
%2c_Sanford_Stadium%2c_September_2007.jpg)
