CH. 1-2 FORMS OF GOVERNMENT AMERICAN GOVERNMENT

CLASSIFYING GOVERNMENT 3 ways to classify governments: 1) who can participate 2) the geographic distribution of governmental power within the state 3) the relationship between the legislative (law-making) and the executive (law-executing) branches

WHO CAN PARTICIPATE DEMOCRACY Supreme political authority rests with the people Gettsyburg Address (1863)—”…Government of the people, by the people, and for the people…”—Abraham Lincoln Two types of democracy: 1) Direct—will of the people is translated into public policy directly by the people themselves in mass meetings

Direct democracy works best in small communities Few relatively simple government problems No direct democracy exists at the national level in the world today Small communities in New England hold town meetings 2) Indirect democracy AKA representative democracy

Representatives are chosen by a small group of people These select people carry out the day-to-day workings of the government Elections of representatives are a way for the public to express their views on various topics People are sovereign in a democracy DICTATORSHIP People that rule cannot be held responsible to the will of the people

Oldest and most common form of government in history 2 types of dictatorship: 1) autocracy—a single person holds unlimited political power 2) oligarchy—power to rule is held by a small, usually self-appointed elite All dictatorships are AUTHORITARIAN (absolute and unchallengeable authority)

Leading examples: 1) Fascist Italy (1922-1943) 2) Nazi Germany (1933-1945) 3) Soviet Union (1917-1989) 4) People’s Republic of China (1949-present) Dictatorships appear to be controlled by the people There are elections but they are tightly controlled

GEOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION OF POWER UNITARY GOVERNMENT Described as a centralized government All powers belong to a single centralized agency Ex.—Great Britain Their local governments exist solely to help out the national parliament Unitary governments are not the same as dictatorships

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT Powers of the government are divided between a central government and several local governments DIVISION OF POWERS—setup cannot be changed by either level acting alone Both levels act directly on the people In the USA the national government has certain powers and the 50 states have other powers Other countries with federal governments: Australia, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Switzerland, and more than 20 others

CONFEDERATE GOVERNMENT Alliance of independent states National government only holds those powers specifically assigned to it by the states—usually defense and foreign affairs Several states can cooperate in matters of common concern but retain their independent identities Confederations are rare

The European Union is the closet example in the world today Formed in 1993 with 11 countries Today, 25 countries with a common currency and foreign and defense policies In the USA: --Articles of Confederation (1781-1789) --Confederate States of America (1861-1865)

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEGISLATIVE AND EXECUTIVE BRANCHES PRESIDENTIAL GOVERNMENT Separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches Both branches are independent and coequal The chief executive: --is chosen independently of the legislature --holds a fixed term of office --has a number of significant powers that the legislative branch can’t control

Separation of powers spelled out in a written constitution Each branch given several powers to block the actions of the other branch The USA is the world’s leading example of presidential government The USA invented this form of government PARLIAMENTARY GOVERNMENT Executive is made up of the prime minister (premier) and that official’s cabinet.

The prime minister and cabinet are members of the legislative branch (parliament) The prime minister is the leader of the majority party Executive is chosen by and under the direct control of the legislature PM remains in power as long as they have the confidence of the parliament (vote of no confidence) Majority of the world’s governments are parliamentary THE END