AP Comparative Government and Politics
Assignment: In your group, design a government for a fictional country that takes into consideration the few
key conditions listed and your knowledge of the terms/concepts you identified in the summer work. Sky’s the
limit! You can adapt old forms of government you’ve learned about, current forms, or create your own, so
long as you address each part of the skeletal requirements and can craft a two-minute group presentation for
the class. Keep in mind what you’ve read and what I’ve lectured on so far.
Your country must have the following:
A name,
a flag,
and a fully-formed government structure that includes what makes the government legitimate, how it
manages/enforces its power and authority, and how it addresses the issues listed in your group conditions.
It must be clear that your country has a way to
create/pass laws (a legislature)
enforce/execute those laws (an executive)
and to adjudicate those laws (a judiciary)
As you create your country, think about the best fit for the conditions you have. Napoleon is reputed to have
said “Geography is destiny” when discussing Russia. Well, it’s all a little more complicated, but certainly where
a state is formed has a lot of impact on what kind of state it is.
Group 1: Homogenous ethnicity; small area; hostile neighbors on one side, friendly neighbors on the other;
diverse natural resources.
Group 2: Heterogenous ethnicities (roughly equal in percentage); large area; friendly neighbors on all sides;
few natural resources,
Group 3: Heterogenous ethnicities (with one major dominant ethnicity with a plurality percentage); medium
area, hostile neighbors on all sides; few natural resources.
Group 4: Homogenous ethnicity; large area, neutral neighbors on all sides, diverse natural resources.
That’s all I’m giving you. Have fun!
You’ll present these in class in brief presentations, so find a creative way to present your country to the world
(our class)! You’ll have to defend your country’s government from me and classmates, as we will get to ask
questions.