I am not a dull knife, but even the best of us aren't really so sure who is running the place we live in and how our vote or opinion can filter its way up. Maybe you don't care, but I've been interested for awhile, and will try to keep you entertained in the educational process.
So, to begin with, there are three parts to the "who are these people" question. There is the city government, the state government and the U.S. government representatives. So let's start with:
You and the City
1. You.
2. You live in your neighborhood, which falls into one of 25 neighborhood planning units (see list of neighborhoods with unit information). These are labeled by a letter. Those participating in the neighborhood planning unit can give information and recommendations to the city council.
2. Your neighborhood is also in one of Atlanta's 12 city districts, which is how you can elect your city council member to represent you and your neighborhood's needs at City Council. (See the Atlanta district map). These are the people who are supposed to be your spokesperson. They are your go-to for issues, complaints, kudos on city issues.
3. Your councilman participates in the
Atlanta City Council (visit link for current members and contact information). The City Council is the legislative branch of Atlanta's government. These people handle ordinances (new city rules) and resolutions (support of projects) for the city. The city council is composed of:
- City Council President (you get to vote for them, he/she votes on new laws if there is a tie)
- 12 City Councilmen from each of the 12 districts of the city (you vote for just your district)
- At-large Post 1 representing districts 1-4
- At-large Post 2 representing districts 5-8
- At-large Post 3 representing districts 9-12
4. When the majority of the City Council members approve new ordinances or want to pass on their resolutions, they go to the Atlanta mayor. The mayor has seven days to approve or veto new legislature. But if no action is taken, it becomes law as default. The major along with the city departments represent the executive branch of Atlanta's government. The current city mayor is Kasim Reed (D), and he is Atlanta's 59th mayor.
You and the State
1. You
2. Your neighborhood also falls into a state district (see Georgia district map). This district allows you to directly elect a state senator and state representative for your area (follow this link to type in your zip code to see who your senator and representatives are).
3. Your state senator and representative participate in the Georgia General Assembly. The assembly is composed of the State Senate and the State House of Representatives. They create the laws/legislation for the state of Georgia. MARTA funding legislation goes through this assembly, which is partly why getting successful votes is hard because there are representatives all over the state who vote on issues, not just Atlanta representatives. It is easy to see how rural Georgia representatives don't want to put money toward a city transit system that they will never use. The Assembly was also responsible for implementing the new no texting and driving law, and handle any other laws that apply to the whole state. They meet the second Monday in January for no longer than 40 days each year.
4. Above the assembly is the Georgia Governor. The current governor is Sonny Perdue (R), the 81st governor and the first republican one since the 1870s. He is responsible for the state budget (though it is set by the assembly) and is head of the state military. This position has the power to veto anything coming from the Georgia General Assembly, but his veto can be overridden by 2/3 of each chamber.
You and the Country
1. You
2. You live in a state (Georgia, I'm hoping since you are reading this) and each state gets to have two state senators that are elected by you. Senators serve for six years. The Vice President of the United States heads up the Senate and the senators you vote for. The senate confirms appointments to the cabinet and military officers, as well as tries federal officials impeached by the House.
3. There is also the lower House of Representatives, and you also get to vote for a U.S. representative. The number of representatives is based on the state's population. Georgia has 13 representatives for each of the 13 districts (see the map of Georgia congressional districts). North Atlanta and Decatur fall into the 4th District, while most the remaining areas of Atlanta fall into the 5th District. Otherwise, Sandy Springs, Dunwoody, Alpharetta and Woodstock areas are in the 6th District, and Duluth/Lawrenceville/Stone Mountain in the 7th. These representatives pass legislature that affects the whole country, though its bills must be approved by the Senate and signed by the President of the United States. Nancy Pelosi (D) is the current leader of the House. So, if you want to make a bigger change to influence the country, then place your vote here.
Keeping all this in mind, mark your calendars for Nov. 2, 2010 for midterm elections. All seats in the House of Representatives are up for election, along with 37 Senate seats and some local Georgia positions. Check your voter registration status and location online and see who is on the Nov. 2 ballot to get informed.
**Photo courtesy of R. Morris
