Gray v. Sanders held that Georgia's county-unit system violated equal protection due to what issue?

Gray v. Sanders held that Georgia's county-unit system violated equal protection due to what issue?

• A. Malapportionment
• B. Gerrymandering
• C. Voter ID
• D. Literacy tests

Answer: (A)

One person, one vote and equal protection are violated when voting power isn’t tied to population. In Georgia’s county-unit system, rural counties had outsized influence because each county carried a fixed number of unit votes regardless of how many residents lived there. That made a vote in a sparsely populated rural county weigh more than a vote in a densely populated urban county, so citizens’ ballots weren’t treated equally. The problem this highlights is malapportionment—the unequal distribution of political power due to population differences. Gerrymandering involves drawing district lines to favor a party, while Voter ID and literacy tests address eligibility requirements, not how votes are weighted.

One person, one vote and equal protection are violated when voting power isn’t tied to population. In Georgia’s county-unit system, rural counties had outsized influence because each county carried a fixed number of unit votes regardless of how many residents lived there. That made a vote in a sparsely populated rural county weigh more than a vote in a densely populated urban county, so citizens’ ballots weren’t treated equally. The problem this highlights is malapportionment—the unequal distribution of political power due to population differences. Gerrymandering involves drawing district lines to favor a party, while Voter ID and literacy tests address eligibility requirements, not how votes are weighted.