SYSTEMS OF GOVERNMENT
QUESTION FOR THOUGHT:

Let’s pretend that your family has decided to go
out to dinner tonight. How would your family go
about making the decision of where to go out to
dinner? Please write at least three complete
sentences.

Possible answers:
 Mom
Decides
(or Dad… but we all know who is really in charge)
 Parents Decide together
 Family Vote
 Other options?
THREE TYPES OF GOVERNMENT

Autocracy – power is held by a single ruler


Oligarchy – power is held by a small, elite group of
people in society


Rule of Few
Democracy – power is held by the people




Rule of One
Rule of Many
Direct Democracy – all people vote on everything
Indirect Democracy (REPUBLIC)– people elect
representatives who make decisions
Which of these sounds most like our government?
ASSIGNMENT
Read pgs. 21-27 in We the People books
 Answer: What are the three characteristics of
republican government?
 Draw and complete the following chart in notes:

ADVANTAGES
DISADVANTAGES
of republican government
Of republican government
THREE CHARACTERISTICS OF A REPUBLICAN GOVT.

Citizens have the power to govern

Citizens delegate their power to elected leaders
who represent the people’s interests

Both citizens and their representatives work
together toward the common good
REPUBLICAN FORM OF GOVERNMENT
ADVANTAGES
of republican government
1. Representatives serve the common
good
- How?
- Self-Interest (re-election)
2. More efficient
- Specialized law-makers
3. All people still have a voice in
government
- How?
- Voting!
4. Representatives are responsible to be
the voice of the people
- What prevents them from serving
special interests only?
- Self-Interest (re-election)
DISADVANTAGES
Of republican government
1. Works best in smaller settings where
communication is easy
- Do you know your U.S. senators?
- Do you know your state
representative?
2. Diversity in population can be
problematic
- What if you are the voice of a district
that has half republicans and half
democrats?
- Half rich and half poor?
3. Can create factions
- Special interests can have a big
influence
ASSIGNMENT:
Get into groups of 2-4 (no more than 4)
 Read pgs. 26-27 in WE THE PEOPLE
 Reflect on the story as you discuss and create
answers to the questions that follow the
reading.
 Have designated people within your group
ready to answer each question.

FORMS OF AUTOCRACY

Absolute Monarchy
Monarch has absolute power
 Does not include “Constitutional
Monarchs” like the Queen of
England


King
Abdullah
of Saudi
Arabia
Dictatorship/Totalitarianism
One leader who not only controls behavior, but
attempts to control thinking
Adolf Hitler
 Fascism
 Communism


Theocracy
Religious leader in charge
 People must follow laws of the religion

Ayatollah
Ruhollah
Khomeini
Two Forms of Totalitarianism
Fascism
Communism
- extreme nationalism
- warlike policies
- persecution of minorities
Adolf Hitler
- Nazi Germany
Benito Mussolini
-founded Italian
Fascism (Italy
1922-1943)
- all property is owned by the
government
- the government controls all
publications, radio, and
television, and restricts
journalism
Kim Jong-il,
North Korea
Examples: North Korea, Cuba,
the former Soviet Union
Autocracy - “Rule by a Single Person”
Democracy - “Rule by the Many”
Oligarchy - Power is held by a small,
elite group of people in society.
- Often controlled by a few powerful families who
raise their children to inherit the government
Characteristics:
• wealth
• political influence
• military strength
• family ties to an aristocracy
• ruthlessness
Examples: Ancient Sparta; South Africa under apartheid when the white
minority ruled the black majority (1948-1994)
There really aren’t any true oligarchies in the world today.
Types of Democracies/Republics
Direct Democracy
- All the citizens vote directly on the laws
Representative Democracy/Republic
Liberal Democracy
- Representatives vote on the laws
- Representative Democracy that includes the protection of minorities, separation of
powers, and protection of liberties
Three Forms of
Republics
Full Presidential Republic
Semi-Presidential Republic
Parliamentary Republic
Rule of
One –
Monarch
or King
Rule of
One Dictator
Rule of
the few –
Small
Group
Rule of
the
many –
People
inherit
related
one
rare
Absolute
King
Abdullah
of Saudi
Arabia
Constitutional
force
dictator
takes
elite
inherit
elected
Adolf Hitler
weak
inherit
wealth
political influence
military strength aristocracy
ruthlessness
The people
representative
s
Direct
All
all
Representative
representatives
Liberal
South
Africa
under
apartheid
U.S. and
many
other
nations in
various
forms
Two Forms of Democratic Government
Presidential Republic
Parliamentary Republic
- The President is both the Chief
Executive and the Head of State
- Powers of the President are usually
balanced (or shared) with those of the
legislature
- Head of State and Chief Executive are two
separate offices. Head of State is either a
President or a Monarch. Chief Executive is
often called a Prime Minister.
- Head of State is usually a ceremonial role,
while the Prime Minister runs the
- The President is elected independently government.
- Prime Minister is not elected, but is
by the people, not by the legislature
usually chosen by the party with the most
seats in the legislature, or is sometimes
appointed by the President.
U.S. President Barack Obama
British Queen Elizabeth II & Prime Minister David Cameron
Semi-Presidential Republic
Some countries combine Presidential and Parliamentary
Systems
The President is usually elected by the
people and serves as head of state, but is
President
more than a purely ceremonial
figurehead. The President also has some François
Hollande
power to run the government.
The Prime Minister is usually appointed by
the President, and sometimes elected by
the people, and serves as the head of
government.
In France, the President controls foreign
policy and the Prime Minister controls
domestic policy.
Examples: France, Russia
France
Prime
Minister
Jean-Marc
Ayrault
(appointed
by the
President)
Three Systems of Government
Unitary
Confederation
Strong
Weak Central Government
Central
Government
Weak State Governments
Strong Central
Government
Strong State Governments
Federal
Strong State Governments
Powers
of the
Central
Gov’t.
Shared
Powers
Powers
of the
States
Unitary System of Government
Definition: A strong central government controls
weaker state and local governments.
Strong Central
Government
Weak State Governments
• Central Government can take power away from the
state and local governments at any time.
• Central Government acts directly on the people.
• Examples: United Kingdom, France, Sweden
Confederation System of Government
Definition: Independent, strong state governments
with a weak central government.
Weak Central Government
Strong
State
Gov-
ern-
ments
• States
have independent control over their own area
• Central government only controls things of common concern
• States can withdraw from the Confederation at any time
• Central government acts on the states, not directly on people
• Example: Second Athenian Empire, Old Swiss Confederacy
Before the Founding Fathers created the
Constitution, most nations had either a
Unitary or Confederate system of
government.
Governments held authority over the people.
The people did not control the government. In
some countries, the King was in charge. In
Confederation governments, the local or state
government was in charge. The people had little
say.
In a Federal System of government, the people decide
who gets the power. In the Constitution, the Framers
decided to split the power between the central
government and the state governments.
Federal System of Government
Definition: Power is shared between the central
government and state governments.
Strong Central
Government
Powers of the
Central
Government
• Create
post offices
• Declare war
Shared
Powers
• Tax the
people
Powers of the
State
Governments
• Create
public schools
Strong State Governments
• The Central Government is usually stronger
than the state governments, but there are some
powers the states have that the Central
Government does not have.
• Examples: United States, India, Canada, Germany, Mexico
STRONG Central
Govt.
weak Central Govt.
STRONG
State
weak State Govts.
STRONG CENTRAL
STRONG Central
Govt.
Govts.
STRONG
STRONG
State
Govts.
SHARED
POWERS
STATE
POWERS
WEAKER
WEAKER
CENTRAL
POWERS
SHARED
PEOPLE
UNITED KINGDOM
FRANCE
STATES
UNITED STATES