Types of Government
monarchy
ruled by a monarch who usually inherits the authority
inherited new ruler is related to previous ruler kingdom Example: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
republic
a government in which the people elect representatives to make the laws
people vote lots of citizen participation free elections representative government
parliamentary democracy
a country whose head of government is the leader of the legislature
usually has a prime minister often has ceremonial president people vote lots of citizen participation Example: State of Israel
presidential democracy
a type of government where the leader is the President and is chosen in a separate election from the legislature
executive branch separation of powers between executive and legislative branches national vote for president
theocracy
a government ruled by a religious leader or leaders
faith based holy leader religious state Example: Islamic Republic of Iran (even though they call themselves a Parliamentary Democracy)
dictatorship
a system of government in which the ruler has absolute power and is not restricted by laws or a constitution
authoritarian Saddam Hussein all powerful leader repression undemocratic despot
Citizen Participation 3 categories that describe who has the power in a country
autocratic
government in which one person possesses unlimited power and the citizen has little if any role in the government
examples dictatorship monarchy (absolute type) theocracy (usually)
democratic
a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections
examples republic parliamentary democracy (most common) presidential democracy (USA)
oligarchic
government by the few, sometimes a government in which a small group exercises control especially for corrupt and selfish purposes. The citizen has a very limited role.
no examples this unit Oligarchic countries are very rare; eventually one of the leaders will seize power from the others, creating an autocracy.
Systems of government are based on one question: How is the power distributed or shared? There are three ways governments distribute power: Unitary Confederation Federal
unitary
A system of government in which authority is centralized.
One central government controls everything Power is not shared between countries, states, or provinces. Examples: Israel, Saudi Arabia, Iran
confederation
A group of loosely allied states or nations that come together for a common cause.
Nations can choose to follow or not to follow the lead of the weak central government. Examples: EU, Confederate States of America
federal
A form of government in which several states or regions defer some powers to a central government while retaining a limited measure of self- government
Power is shared by a powerful central government States or provinces are given considerable self-rule, usually through their own legislature. Examples: United States,