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FORMS OF GOVERNMENT

FORMS OF GOVERNMENT. Classifying Governments. Who can participate in the governing process? The geographic distribution of governmental power within the state The relationship between the legislative (lawmaking) and the executive (law-executing) branches of government. . Who can participate.

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FORMS OF GOVERNMENT

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  1. FORMS OF GOVERNMENT

  2. Classifying Governments • Who can participate in the governing process? • The geographic distribution of governmental power within the state • The relationship between the legislative (lawmaking) and the executive (law-executing) branches of government.

  3. Who can participate • To many people, the most meaningful of the classifications is the one the depends on the number of person who can take in the governing process.

  4. Democracy • Supreme political authority rests with the people. • The people hold the sovereign power. • Government is only conducted by and with the consent of the people. • Abraham Lincoln gave immortality to this definition in his Gettysburg Address in 1863:”government of the people, by the people, for the people.”

  5. Democracy • Can either be direct or indirect. • Direct democracy, also called a pure democracy, exists where the will of the people is translated to public policy (law) directly by the people themselves in mass meetings. • Does not exist on a national level. • Usually can work in small communities.

  6. Democracy • Also called a representative democracy. • Indirect Democracy- representative democracy, a small group chosen by the people acts as the representatives to express the popular will • These agents of the people are responsible for day to day conduct of government. • Held accountable to the people for that conduct, especially in periodic elections.

  7. Democracy • People can either express their satisfaction or disapproval by casting ballots. • Representative democracy is government by popular consent.

  8. Democracy • Some people call the United States a republic. • Republic, sovereign power is held by those eligible to vote. • Political power is exercised by representatives chosen by and held responsible to those citizens. • In a democracy people are the only source for any and all of the government’s power.

  9. Dictatorship • Those who rule cannot be held responsible to the will of the people. • The government is not accountable for its policies, nor for how they are carried out. • It is the oldest, and it is certainly the most common, form of government known to history

  10. Dictatorship • Autocracy- is a government in which a single person holds unlimited political power. • Oligarchy- is a government in which power to rule is held by a small usually self appointed elite. • All dictatorships are authoritarian- those in power hold absolute and unchangeable authority over the people.

  11. Dictatorship • Modern dictatorships have tended to be totalitarian. • They exercise complete power over nearly every aspect of human affairs. • Their power embraces all matters of human concern.

  12. Examples of Dictatorships • Nazi Germany (1933-1945) • Soviet Union (from 1917-until the late 1980’s) • People’s Republic of China (1949-present)

  13. Dictatorship • One person dictatorships are not that common today. • Example are Libya (Muammar al-Qaddafi) and some Arab and African states. • Several groups are usually behind a dictator; army, religious leaders, industrialists. • Typically are militaristic and power was gained through force. • After crushing opposition at home, these regimes mat turn to foreign aggression to enhance the country’s military power and prestige.

  14. Geographic Distribution of Power • Unitary Government • Federal Government • Confederate Government

  15. Unitary Government • All power held by a central agency. • Great Britain-Parliament holds all the power • All of the powers held by the government are concentrated in the central government. • Power can be given to local governments but only those that that central government decides to give them. • Most governments in the world are Unitarian

  16. Unitary Government • All power is held by central government. • The government might not have all the power. • In Great Britain the power held by the government is limited. It is both unitary and at the same time democratic.

  17. Federal Government • Power of government is divided between central and local governments. • An authority superior to both the central and local governments makes this division of powers on a geographic basis. • In the US the National Government has powers and the 50 states have others. • Division of power is set out in the constitution.

  18. Federal Government • Constitution stands above both levels of government. • Can not be changed unless people acting through both the National Government and the States agree to change. • Each of the 50 State governments is unitary and not federal in form.

  19. Confederate Government • Alliance of independent states a central organization. • The confederate government handles only those matters that member states assign to it. • Most often they do not have the powers to make laws that apply directly to individuals. • Typically the power of this government is limited to defense and trade. • Example-European Union

  20. Confederate Government • This type of government is rare in the modern world. • EU has 25 members and was launched to find a common currency and to coordinate foreign defense. • In our own history • Articles of Confederation (1781-1789) • Confederate States of America (1861-1865)

  21. Relationship Between Legislative and Executive Branches • Presidential Government- The executive and legislative branches, are separate and independent and coequal. • The President (chief executive ) is chosen independently of legislatures. • Holds office for a fixed term. • Has broad powers, not subject to direct control of the legislative branch. • U.S. leading example of presidential government. • Most presidential systems found in the Western Hemispehere.

  22. Parlimentary Government • Parliamentary Government- the executive is a prime minister or premiere and the official’s cabinet. • Prime minister’s cabinet are members of the legislative branch, the Parliament. • Remains in office only as long as their policy and administration have the support of the majority of Parliament. • If vote of no confidence the Prime Minister and the Cabinet must resign and new government is formed

  23. Parliamentary Government • Majority of the world’s governments are Parliamentary. • Avoids one of the major problems of the presidential form. • Prolonged conflict and sometimes deadlock between executive and legislative branches. • On the other hand the system of checks and balances are not part of the Parliamentary system.

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