What Do You Know? Name the city, county, state, and country you live in. Beside the name of each place, what is the leader of each kind of government is called? City – Mayor Gwinnett – County Commissioner Georgia – Governor United States – President Why are there different levels in our government?

How do European countries distribute their power within their governments? Political Development in Europe: Distribution of Power Lesson

Why Do We Have Governments?  They are organized ways for creating laws/rules designed to protect the well-being of the general public and to help manage conflict.  They determine the power structure (who has the power) within a country. In some countries, only one person or party maintains centralized control of the government, while in other countries power is shared between individuals and factions.

Why Do We Have Governments? All countries require governments to function. Governments provide laws, structure, public services, and national defense. There are different types of governments: – democracies – republics – monarchies – dictatorships

How Is Power Shared? Federal Confederation Unitary Image from Center of Civic Education. 2008

Federal Government Federal– a system in which the power is divided between one central, regional, and local governments Examples: – United States – Russian Federation – Germany Central/National Government Regional Governments (state/province) Local Governments

Should the national government, state government, or both have these powers? List of Powers Shared in a Federal Government Issue driver’s licensesMake laws for the environment Collect taxesConduct elections Create marriage lawsPunish law breakers Declare warCreate standards for schools Make agreements with other countries Defend the country Coin moneyProtect citizen rights

The power is shared in a Federal government- take a look at the United States! National GovernmentState GovernmentLocal Government (example: City government, County government) Executive Branch: President Legislative Branch: Congress Made up of 2 houses: The Senate The House of Representatives Judicial Branch: Supreme Court Executive Branch: Governor Legislative Branch: Congress Made up of 2 houses: The Senate The House of Representatives Judicial Branch: Court system Leader of City Government: Mayor You also have county courts and judges, city councils, and other groups of people who play a part in governing their area

Federal Governments of the World (All countries in green)

Unitary Government Unitary – a system in which the power is held by one central authority All power is given to the one branch of government. Examples: – France – United Kingdom and Northern Ireland (U.K.) – Sweden – Spain – Former Soviet Union

Unitary Governments of the World (All countries in blue)

Confederation Confederation - a system in which power is shared by an alliance or union of political organizations Independent states voluntarily work together for some common purpose and agree to certain limits on their freedom of action as a confederation. Examples: -European Union -Switzerland

Let’s Talk About IT! Let’s get in groups of three. Number yourselves one, two, and three. Ones explain to the twos and threes how a unitary government system distributes power. Twos explain to the ones and threes how a confederation government system distributes power. Threes explain to the ones and twos how a federal government system distributes power.

Written Summary: How is the power distributed politically? Image from Center of Civic Education. 2008

Bibliography Image from Map-of-unitary-states.svg. NationMaster.Com Map-of-unitary-states.svg Image from “Constitution Day Across the Country” Center for Civic Education 2008.