Types of Government

Types of
Government
(Note that for some

countries, more than one
definition applies.)
Absolute
Monarchy
• Where the monarch rules unhindered, i.e., without any

laws, constitution, or legally organized opposition.
• Example: Louis XIV in France
• Many nations formerly with absolute monarchies, such as
Morocco have moved towards Constitutional monarchy,
although the monarch retains tremendous power, to the
point that the parliament's influence on political life is
negligible. In Bhutan, the government moved from
absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy following
planned parliamentary elections to the Tshogdu in 2003,
and the election of a National Assembly in 2008.
Anarchy
• No government
and no laws
• Total disorder
• Example
• Usually comes
from government
failure or
overthrown
• Somalia
Aristocracy
• An aristocracy is ruled by the
aristocrats
• Typically the wealthy, educated people
• Many monarchies have really
been ruled by aristocrats
• Today, the term aristocracy is
used negatively to accuse a
republic of being dominated by
rich people
Authoritarian
• A form of government in which state
authority is imposed onto many aspects
of citizens' lives.
Constitutional Monarchy
• Description
• The King/Queen is limited by law and shares power with
elected officials. a system of government in which a monarch
is guided by a constitution whereby his/her rights, duties, and
responsibilities are spelled out in written law or by custom.
• Example
• Ex. The U.K., Sweden, Spain, Japan.
Commonwealth
• A nation, state, or other political entity
founded on law and united by a compact
of the people for the common good.
Commonwealth Nations with
Queen Elizabeth II as head of state
Antigua and Barbuda St. Vincent and the
Australia Grenadines
Bahamas Tuvalu
Barbados U.K.
Belize
Canada
Grenada
Jamaica
New Zealand
Papua
Solomon Islands
St. Kitts-Nevis
St. Lucia
Commonwealth nations with an
indigenous monarchy
• Samoa
• Lesotho
• Malaysia
• Swaziland
• Tonga
Other constitutional monarchies
Bahrain Norway
Belgium Spain
Bhutan Sweden
Cambodia Thailand
Denmark The Netherlands
Japan
Jordan
Kuwait
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Monaco
Morocco
Nepal
Communist
• A system of government in which the
state plans and controls the economy
and a single - often authoritarian - party
holds power.
• State controls are imposed with the
elimination of private ownership of
property or capital while claiming to
make progress toward a higher social
order in which all goods are equally
shared by the people (i.e., a classless
society).
Constitutional
• A government by or operating under an
authoritative document (constitution)
that sets forth the system of
fundamental laws and principles that
determines the nature, functions, and
limits of that government.
Confederacy (Confederation)
• A union by compact or treaty between
states, provinces, or territories, that
creates a central government with
limited powers.
• The constituent entities retain supreme
authority over all matters except those
delegated to the central government.
Democratic Republic
• Usually a democratic republic is not
democratic and is not a republic
• A government that officially calls
itself a “democratic republic” is
usually a dictatorship
• Communist dictatorships have been
especially prone to use this term
• The official name of North Vietnam was “The
Democratic Republic of Vietnam”
• China uses “The People’s Republic of China”
Democracy
• The word “democracy” literally means
“rule by the people.”
• A form of government in which the
supreme power is retained by the
people, but which is usually exercised
indirectly through a system of
representation and delegated
authority periodically renewed.
Dictatorship
• A dictatorship consists of rule by
one person or a group of people
• Very few dictators admit they are
dictators and almost always claim
to be leaders of democracies
• The dictator may be one person
• Castro in Cuba Iraq (Saddam Hussein)
• Hitler in Germany
• Or a group of people
• The Communist Party in China
Direct Democracy
• Description
• The power of government is controlled
directly by the people
• Example
• New England Town Meetings
Ecclesiastical
• A government administrated by a
church.
• Example: Holy See (Vatican)

Emirate
• Similar to a monarchy or sultanate, but
a government in which the supreme
power is in the hands of an emir (the
ruler of a Muslim state)
• The emir may be an absolute overlord or
a sovereign with constitutionally limited
authority.
Federal (Federation)
• A form of government in which sovereign
power is formally divided - usually by
means of a constitution - between a central
authority and a number of constituent
regions (states, colonies, or provinces) so
that each region retains some management
of its internal affairs.
• Differs from a confederacy in that the
central government exerts influence
directly upon both individuals as well as
upon the regional units.
Federal republic
• A state in which the powers of the
central government are restricted and in
which the component parts (states,
colonies, or provinces) retain a degree of
self-government.
• Ultimate sovereign power rests with the
voters who chose their governmental
representatives.
Islamic republic
• A particular form of government adopted
by some Muslim states; although such a
state is, in theory, a theocracy, it remains
a republic, but its laws are required to be
compatible with the laws of Islam.
• These are the Islamic Laws according to the
Fatawa of Ayatullah al Uzama Syed Ali al-Husaini
Seestani.
• Sharia is derived from two primary sources of
Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Qur'an,
and the example set by the Islamic Prophet
Muhammad.
Maoism
• The theory and practice of Marxism-
Leninism developed in China by Mao
Zedong (Mao Tse-tung), which states
that a continuous revolution is
necessary if the leaders of a communist
state are to keep in touch with the
people.
Marxism
• The political, economic, and social
principles espoused by 19th century
economist Karl Marx.
• He viewed the struggle of workers as a
progression of historical forces that would
proceed from a class struggle of the
proletariat (workers) exploited by
capitalists (business owners), to a socialist
"dictatorship of the proletariat," to, finally,
a classless society - Communism.
Marxism-Leninism
• An expanded form of communism
developed by Lenin from doctrines of
Karl Marx.
• Lenin saw imperialism as the final
stage of capitalism and shifted the focus
of workers' struggle from developed to
underdeveloped countries.
Monarchy
• A monarchy consists of rule by a king or
queen for life and by hereditary right
• Sometimes a king is called an
“emperor”
• There are no large monarchies today
• The United Kingdom, which has a
queen, is really a republic because the
queen has virtually no political power
Oligarchy
• Description
• When a family or small group of people
control all of governments power
whose authority generally is based on
wealth or power.
• Example
• Saudi Arabia’s Royal Family
Parliamentary democracy
• A political system in which the
legislature (parliament) selects the
government - a prime minister, premier,
or chancellor along with the cabinet
ministers - according to party strength
as expressed in elections.
• By this system, the government
acquires a dual responsibility: to the
people as well as to the parliament.
Parliamentary government (Cabinet-
Parliamentary government)
• A government in which members of an
executive branch (the cabinet and its leader -
a prime minister, premier, or chancellor) are
nominated to their positions by a legislature
or parliament, and are directly responsible to
it.
• This type of government can be dissolved at
will by the parliament (legislature) by means
of a no confidence vote or the leader of the
cabinet may dissolve the parliament if it can
no longer function.
Parliamentary monarchy
• A state headed by a monarch who is not
actively involved in policy formation or
implementation (i.e., the exercise of
sovereign powers by a monarch in a
ceremonial capacity).
• True governmental leadership is carried
out by a cabinet and its head - a prime
minister, premier, or chancellor - who
are drawn from a legislature
(parliament).
Representative Democracy
• Description
• The people
elect
representative
s who then
make decisions
for them
• Example
• The United
States
Republic
• A literal democracy is impossible
in a political system containing
more than a few people
• All “democracies” are really
republics.
• In a republic, the people elect
representatives to make and
enforce laws.
Socialism
• A government in which the means of
planning, producing, and distributing
goods is controlled by a central
government that theoretically seeks a
more just and equitable distribution of
property and labor.
• In actuality, most socialist governments
have ended up being no more than
dictatorships over workers by a ruling
elite.
Sultanate
• Similar to a monarchy, but a
government in which the supreme
power is in the hands of a sultan (the
head of a Muslim state)
• The sultan may be an absolute ruler or
a sovereign with constitutionally limited
authority.
Theocracy
• A form of government in which a Deity is

recognized as the supreme civil ruler, but
the Deity's laws are interpreted by
ecclesiastical authorities (bishops, mullahs,
etc.); a government subject to religious
authority.
Example
• The Vatican & Iran
Totalitarian
• A government that seeks to subordinate
the individual to the state by controlling
not only all political and economic
matters, but also the attitudes, values,
and beliefs of its population.
• Source: CIA World Factbook

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_system_of_gover
nment

Types of Government

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Types of Government

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Types of

(Note that for some

• Where the monarch rules unhindered, i.e., without any

• Example: Holy See (Vatican)

• A form of government in which a Deity is

• Source: CIA World Factbook

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