Governments 101

1. Governments 101 *How do governments distribute power? *How do governments determine citizen participation? *What are the two main forms of democratic governments?

2. How do governments distribute power? These countries have unitary governments. In a unitary government, the central government possesses much authority and decision-making power. Local governing bodies simply serve as administrative branches of the central government. Great Britain is a familiar example of a unitary government. Communist nations such as Cuba, China, and North Korea also have unitary governments. A government using this form is very centralized.

3. How do governments distribute power? In a confederate government, power is distributed completely opposite of a unitary government. Local governments protect and preserve their own authority by forming a weak central government. The United States briefly used a confederate system of government in the Articles of Confederation and in the southern states’ attempts to form the Confederate States of America during the Civil War. The monarchs of the member states of the German Confederation meet at Frankfurt in 1863.

4. How do governments distribute power? In a federal government, power is split between a central government authority and its states or regions. Usually, an overriding law of the land, known as a constitution, gives duties, rights, and privileges to each level of government. The constitution usually defines how power is shared between national, state, and local governments; the power to amend this constitution is usually granted to the citizens or their governmental representatives. Legislative Executive Judicial

5. How do governments determine citizen participation? An autocratic form of government: when the political power is held by a single self-appointed ruler. The term autocrat is derived from the Greek word autokratōr (lit. "self-ruler", or "he who rules by one's self"). Examples of dictators from autocratic governments: Julius Caesar Pol Pot Ancient Rome Cambodia 100 B.C. 1970s

6. How do governments determine citizen participation? Oligarchy means the rule of the few, and those few are generally the people who are richer and more powerful than others. Oligarchies can be made of families, elected officials, or rich citizens of a country. Chinese aristocrats who were members of one family created an oligarchic government.

7. How do governments determine citizen participation? A democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system. There are two types of democracies: pure or direct democracies, and representative democracies. These countries have electoral or representative democracies

8. What are the two main forms of democratic governments? Parliamentary Democracy: a democracy which has a parliament, or a national representative body with complete legislative powers for a country (it makes the laws). The executive branch is often led by a Prime Minister. Example: the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which is made up of the House of Lords and the House of Commons. This is the building in London, England where the United Kingdom’s Parliament meets regularly Orange: Parliamentary Republics Red: Constitutional Monarchies Green: Parliamentary Republics with an Executive President

9. What are the two main forms of democratic governments? Presidential Democracy: The President is the chief executive as well as the symbolic head of government. Since the executive and legislative branches may exercise some power over the other, they are sometimes in conflict. Executive Branch Legislative Branch Judicial Branch

10. Parliamentary vs. Presidential Democracies Parliamentary System Presidential System Joining of powers Separation of powers Executive branch members are also legislative branch members Clear separation between executive and legislative branches Parliament elects the head of government; head can be voted out by parliament The government’s executive (the President) is separate from Congress Political parties are strong; the opposition party is important to control of the government Political parties have less of a role in the government