Download - Ways of governing
Types of Government
Types of government define who rules and who participates
There are three types of governments:
1. Autocracy: Rule by one
2. Oligarchy: Rule by few
3. Democracy: Rule by all • Forms: Direct and Representative• Methods: Parliamentary and Presidential
Governments distribute power through systems.
A. Unitary• All decisions and power held at a central level
B. Federal• Decisions and power split between national and
state or provincial governments
Autocracy
• Government in which the power to govern is held by one person.
• Generally the power to rule is inherited or taken by military force.
There are three types of autocratic government.
1. Dictatorships
2. Absolute Monarchies
3. Constitutional Monarchies
Dictatorship
• A dictatorship consists of rule by one person or a group of people often taken by force.
• Very few dictators admit they are dictators and almost always claim to be leaders of democracies
Dictatorship
• Description• A leader has total
power
• Examples include:
• Cuba (Castro) & North Korea (Kim Jong Il) .
Monarchy
A monarchy consists of rule by a king/queen or “emperor”.
1. Absolute
2. Constitutional
Absolute Monarchy
• King or Queen holds all of the power to make laws and govern)
• Example• Louis XIV in France during the 1700s
Constitutional Monarchy
• King/Queen has power that is limited by a set of rules called a constitution) and shares power with elected officials
• ExamplePresent day England
Oligarchy• When a family or small group of
people control all of the power to govern and make laws
• The group gets their power from either military, wealth or social status.
• Elections may be held but offer only one candidate.
• Examples• China
• Only one party (communist) allowed
Theocracy
• type of oligarchy where religious leaders govern
• Example• Iran
Democracy
• “Democracy” literally means “rule by the people.”
• In a democracy, the people govern – by voting.
Kinds of democracies
1. Direct Democracy
2. Representative Democracy
Direct Democracy
• Description• The power of government is controlled directly
by the people• Everyone votes on every issue
Example:In some American states, town meetings are held where every citizen votes by publicly proclaiming their vote.
• Direct democracy is impossible in a political system containing more than a few people.
• In a representative democracy, delegates are selected by the people through a defined process to make and enforce laws.
Representative Democracy
• The people elect representatives who then make decisions for them
Example:
Canada, United States
Forms of Representative Democracy
1. Parliamentary
2. Presidential
Parliamentary Democracy
• Voters elect members to a Parliament (legislature)
• Example: Canada, Britain,
• Parliaments are bicameral in that they have two houses where decisions are made
1. House of Commons• The political party with the most elected
members in the House of Commons forms the government. The leader of that party becomes the Prime Minister.
2. Senate or House of Lords• Elected government chooses people to
govern in the senate.
Parliamentary Democracy
Presidential Democracy
• Voters elect legislators and also elect, directly or indirectly, the President.
In a presidential system, voters have a more direct say about who will serve as President
Parliamentary System
Presidential System
Executive Legislative
CitizensCitizens
Legislative
Executive
Elect
Elect
Select
Elect
Canada’s form of government can be described as
A constitutional monarchy characterized
by a federation of provinces that operate
within a democratic parliamentary system.