Forms of Government notes Blue – write Red – don’t write

SS.7.C.3.1 Compare different forms of government (direct democracy, representative democracy, socialism, communism, monarchy, oligarchy, autocracy). SS.7.C.3.2 Compare parliamentary, federal, confederal, and unitary systems of government.

General Information All nations have a government – someone “rules” citizens. 3 powers: executive, legislative, & judicial Legislative – make laws Executive – enforce laws Judicial – interpret laws Government is determined by who has the powers of laws or who controls them.

Types of Governments

Rulebook=laws=Constitution Democracy Rule by the people Citizens hold the power Rulebook=laws=Constitution

Direct Democracy Everyone participates in lawmaking Difficult to manage with a bunch of people Time consuming Examples Ancient Athens Some parts of Switzerland Some New England towns

Representative Democracy Still rule by people Republics Elect leaders to make decisions Vote for those who vote Representative can be replaced Examples USA France Jacksonville

Che è vero? Vero In a representative democracy, citizens vote on laws directly, themselves A direct democracy is hard to manage in a large country with many citizens.

Monarchy King or queen Position is inherited by birth In past, total control (absolute) Today, most have some democracy thrown in Today, monarchs are limited in almost every example Absolute Monarchy Examples Brunei Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates Swaziland Vatican City Limited Monarchy Examples United Kingdom Norway Japan

Autocracy One person, all powerful Limited monarchs are not autocrats Absolute monarchs are autocrats Dictatorships No limits on power, no elections Dictatorship Examples Chad Azerbaijan Rwanda Turkey Gambia Uzbekistan Equatorial Guinea Nicaragua Turkmenistan Angola Venezuela North Korea Zimbabwe Cuba Belarus Cameroon Iran Fiji Sudan Syria

Oligarchy Rule of few, not many Minority (wealthy) has power Political, religious, social, military, ethnic Position is birthright Oligarchy Examples Iran

Last two combine systems economics & power Politics = power

Socialism Economic AND political system Protection from inequality Government manages the economy Redistribution of $$$ = equality Can be democratic Socialist Country Examples United Kingdom China Denmark Finland Netherlands Canada Sweden Norway Ireland New Zealand Belgium

Communism More extreme than socialism Complete economic & social equality All have the same Government owns everything, citizens share Powerful government Communist Country Examples North Korea China Vietnam Laos Cuba

Practice Chosen by the people Claim power by force or birth

Practice Chosen by the people Claim power by force or birth

Practice Chosen by the people Claim power by force or birth

Practice Chosen by the people Claim power by force or birth

Practice This government has a queen as its head. Her father was the king when he was alive. She does not have total power over her citizens, though. She shares power with an elected Parliament that votes on laws. Communism Monarchy Autocracy Socialism B

Practice In this government, only the rich and powerful (about 2% of the population) have the power to hold office and vote for laws. The majority of citizens do not have a say in their government. Autocracy Oligarchy Representative Democracy Monarchy B

Practice In this huge country, busy citizens elect officials at the national, state, and local levels to make day-to-day decisions about government on their behalf. C Direct Democracy Communism Representative Democracy Monarchy

Practice This government is ruled by a military dictator who removed the elected president years ago and tolerates no opposition to his rule. He wields all political power in his country. Oligarchy Autocracy Monarchy communism B

Practice This government has a newly elected president, but in an effort to help its poor, the government controls large segments of the economy and taxes the wealthy heavily to provide services for all citizens. Oligarchy Autocracy Monarchy Socialism D

Summary All nations have some kind of government. Factors like culture and history determine what form of government a nation adopts. Democracies – direct and representative – allow the people to rule. In monarchies and autocracies, one person rules. In oligarchies, a minority rules. Communist and socialist governments control their nations’ economies to a varying degree.

Type of government – who has the power System of government – rules to explain how the government works How is power Distributed Separated Shared

Unitary System Central Govt. Top down! Regions States Central Govt. Top down! Provinces Districts Strong central government tells local governments what to do.

Federal System Central Govt. Power sharing! Regions States Central Govt. Provinces Power sharing! Districts Equal central government shares duties with local governments

Confederation System Bottom up! Central Govt. States Regions Central Govt. Bottom up! Provinces Districts Strong states grant weak powers to central government

Unitary system – more central power – top down Federal system – power is shared Confederation system – weak central power – bottom up Examples United Kingdom France Italy Examples USA Brazil India Examples Canada Switzerland Belgium

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