I found the ways in which the Georgia Constitution and U.S. Constitution treat the different branches of government interesting. There were some ways in which the two constitutions overlapped, but also many differences. The U.S. Constitution, in Article I, defines the Senate and House of Representatives. In Article III, the Georgia Constitution describes its similar “General Assembly.” The Georgia General Assembly differs from the U.S. Senate and House in that senators and representatives in Georgia are elected based on districts, whereas for the U.S. Senate and House elects senators and representatives based on states and population numbers. I found this difference, even though it’s a small one, interesting. The U.S. as a country is huge, and yet only two senators come from every state. In contrast, the tiny state of Georgia has multiple representatives from every district. This seems like it would make the Georgia General Assembly more representational of its constituents.

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The amendment process also differs between the two documents. In the U.S. Constitution, Article V states that three-fourths of the states are necessary to ratify an amendment. In contrast, the Georgia Constitution, in Article X, has to be “submitted to the electors of the entire state” for a roll-call vote. I find this difference interesting because it means that the Georgia Constitution gives more power to the people of the state in changing the Constitution, whereas the U.S. Constitution is just a matter of states voting.

Finally, I noticed that there is a difference between the definition of the executive branch between the two documents. Article II of the U.S. Constitution defines the powers of the president and the executive branch. Article V of the Georgia Constitution defines the powers of the governor and executive branch. One big difference I noticed here is that the Georgia Constitution says that a governor “shall have been a citizen of the United States 15 years.” I knew that the president of the United States had to be a U.S. Citizen born here, so I was surprised to learn that the executive branch of Georgia did not need to be born in Georgia, or even the United States.

    References
  • Georgia State Assembly. Constitution of the State of Georgia. 2013
  • United States. Cong. The U.S. Constitution. Washington, D.C.: Dept. of the Interior