The history of county government in Georgia is a long one. In 1758, colonial Georgia was divided into eight parishes, the earliest political districts represented in the royal assembly. By the constitution of 1777, the parishes were transformed into counties, and as settlement gradually expanded, the number of counties grew. The Georgia constitution of 1877 granted counties from one to three seats in the house of representatives, depending on population. This county-unit system was used in counting votes for elected state and congressional offices until 1962, when it was ruled unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court. Originally administered by judges of county courts, today Georgia counties are administered by the commission system. In 1965, the legislature passed a home-rule law permitting local governments to amend their own charters. As of 2002 Georgia had 156 counties.
The traditional and most common form of municipal government is the mayor-council form. But city managers are employed by some communities, and a few make use of the commission system. During the 1970s there were efforts to merge some of the larger cities with their counties. However, most county voters showed an unwillingness to be burdened with city problems.
In 2002, Georgia had 531 municipal governments, 180 public school districts, and 581 special districts.