ABSTRACT
During the 1991 session, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) had required Georgia to adopt a three black majority district Congressional plan as a condition for preclearance. The Supreme Court's decision sent political shock waves through Georgia and southern politics. In contemporary America, black elected officials (BEOs) also have two options. Firstly, they can accept the legitimacy of the existing rules of the political system and work closely with the white political and economic elites to maintain the status quo. Secondly, the positions in which BEOs serve can provide them with an opportunity to use the political process for the benefit of their African-American constituency to redress past injustices, redistribute societies' resources more equitably, and generally improve the quality of life of the masses. The members of the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus (GLBC) were faced with this not so Hob- besian choice in the 1995 special session of the general assembly on redistricting/reapportionment.
