1. County Unit System
The 1917 Neil Primary Act established a county unit system for political
primaries. At this time in Georgia, the Democratic Party was the only active
political party in the state. This meant that the outcome of the primary
elections and the general elections were usually the same.
Under the county unit system, the winner of the popular vote in each county received the “unit” votes for that county.
This system gave each county a given number of “units” based on the size of the population
Smaller, rural areas had more voting units per person than the large urban areas.

2. Eight Most Populous Counties, 1920
Fulton County
232,606
Chatham County
100,032
Bibb County
71,304
Richmond County
63,692
Muscogee County
44,195
Dekalb County
44,051
Floyd County
39,841
Laurens County
39,605
Total Unit Votes
8 X 6 votes= 48units
The next 30 counties had
4 county unit votes= 120
The remaining 121 counties
had 2 county unit votes=242
**The 38 largest counties had
2/3 of Georgia’s voters, but
The other 121 counties
together could decide a state
election.

3. Look at the table below and explain what is unfair about the county unit system.

4. Those Who Opposed the County Unit System
Mostly urban citizens
County Unit System concentrated political power in the hands of rural counties even though the population growth in GA was in the cities and urban areas.
It allowed people to be elected to office without a majority of the state’s popular vote.

5. Those Who were in favor of the county unit vote
The County Unit System was fair because it allowed the smaller and less populated counties to have the same power and influence as the larger counties