125-400: A parliamentary system , or parliamentary democracy , is a form of government where the head of government (chief executive) derives their democratic legitimacy from their ability to command the support ("confidence") of a majority of the legislature , to which they are held accountable. This head of government is usually, but not always, distinct from a ceremonial head of state . This
250-523: A 'mixed' or hybrid constitution , partly formally codified and partly uncodified. The codified part originally made no reference whatsoever to a prime minister and still gives no parameters of the office. Instead, their powers, duties, appointment and termination follow uncodified conventions. The Constitution Act, 1867 only establishes the Queen's Privy Council for Canada , to which all federal ministers (among others) are appointed and with Members of which
375-485: A change in power without an election, and for allowing elections at any time. Bagehot considered fixed-term elections such as the four-year election rule for presidents of the United States to be unnatural, as it can potentially allow a president who has disappointed the public with a dismal performance in the second year of his term to continue on until the end of his four-year term. Under a parliamentary system,
500-449: A codified constitution, however, do have a term of office of the prime minister linked to the period in office of the parliament. Hence, for example, Latvian prime minister Krišjānis Kariņš , who was first appointed in 2018 , had to be reappointed as head of a new government following the 2022 Latvian parliamentary election . The position of prime minister is usually chosen from the political party that commands - whether by itself or as
625-653: A definite election calendar can be abused. Under some systems, such as the British, a ruling party can schedule elections when it believes that it is likely to retain power, and so avoid elections at times of unpopularity. (From 2011, election timing in the UK was partially fixed under the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 , which was repealed by the Dissolution and Calling of Parliament Act 2022 .) Thus, by
750-471: A different party. In Canada and Australia, there are no restraints on legislators switching sides. In New Zealand, waka-jumping legislation provides that MPs who switch parties or are expelled from their party may be expelled from Parliament at the request of their former party's leader. A few parliamentary democracies such as the United Kingdom and New Zealand have weak or non-existent checks on
875-465: A directly elected lower house with the power to determine the executive government, and an upper house which may be appointed or elected through a different mechanism from the lower house. Scholars of democracy such as Arend Lijphart distinguish two types of parliamentary democracies: the Westminster and Consensus systems. Implementations of the parliamentary system can also differ as to how
1000-456: A goal to create a typology or taxonomy of polities , as typologies of political systems are not obvious. It is especially important in the political science fields of comparative politics and international relations . Like all categories discerned within forms of government, the boundaries of government classifications are either fluid or ill-defined. Superficially, all governments have an official de jure or ideal form. The United States
1125-425: A governing body, such as a legislature or jury . Some governments combine both direct and indirect democratic governance, wherein the citizenry selects representatives to administer day-to-day governance, while also reserving the right to govern directly through popular initiatives , referendums (plebiscites), and the right of recall . In a constitutional democracy the powers of the majority are exercised within
1250-463: A narrower scope, such as the government of Portugal , which is actually more similar to the concept of "administration" . The moment and place that the phenomenon of human government developed is lost in time; however, history does record the formations of early governments. About 5,000 years ago, the first small city-states appeared. By the third to second millenniums BC, some of these had developed into larger governed areas: Sumer , ancient Egypt ,
1375-653: A powerful president with an executive responsible to parliament: for example, the French Fifth Republic . Parliamentarianism may also apply to regional and local governments . An example is Oslo which has an executive council (Byråd) as a part of the parliamentary system. The devolved nations of the United Kingdom are also parliamentary and which, as with the UK Parliament , may hold early elections – this has only occurred with regards to
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#17327719565141500-520: A presidency), regardless of the correct title of the head of government as applied in his or her respective country. The few exceptions to the rule are Germany and Austria, whose head of government's title is Federal Chancellor ; Monaco, whose head of government is referred to as the Minister of State; and Vatican City, for which the head of government is titled the Secretary of State. A stand-out case
1625-431: A prime minister is the official appointed to manage the civil service and execute the directives of the head of state . Today, the prime minister is often, but not always, a member of the legislature or its lower house, and is expected with other ministers to ensure the passage of bills through the legislature . In some monarchies the monarch may also exercise executive powers (known as the royal prerogative ) without
1750-476: A prime minister that has lost support in the middle of his term can be easily replaced by his own peers with a more popular alternative, as the Conservative Party in the UK did with successive prime ministers David Cameron , Theresa May , Boris Johnson , Liz Truss , and Rishi Sunak . Although Bagehot praised parliamentary governments for allowing an election to take place at any time, the lack of
1875-469: A prime minister, even if the label is different. The term goes back to ancient Roman times as head of the chancellery . This title as head of government or the administration existed in ancient China as Grand Chancellor (Chinese: 宰相; pinyin: Zǎixiàng ), sometimes translated as "prime minister", existed since 685 BCE and ancient Japan Chancellor of the Realm (太政大臣 Daijō-daijin ) since the 7th century CE. In
2000-408: A quarter of the world's population under democratically backsliding governments. Prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government , often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system . A prime minister is not the head of state , but rather the head of government , serving as
2125-481: A rapid change in legislation and policy as long as there is a stable majority or coalition in parliament, allowing the government to have 'few legal limits on what it can do' When combined with first-past-the-post voting , this system produces the classic "Westminster model" with the twin virtues of strong but responsive party government. This electoral system providing a strong majority in the House of Commons, paired with
2250-516: A shrewd timing of elections, in a parliamentary system, a party can extend its rule for longer than is feasible in a presidential system. This problem can be alleviated somewhat by setting fixed dates for parliamentary elections, as is the case in several of Australia's state parliaments. In other systems, such as the Dutch and the Belgian, the ruling party or coalition has some flexibility in determining
2375-420: A specific term in office and in effect may remain in power through a number of elections and parliaments. For example, Margaret Thatcher was only ever appointed prime minister on one occasion, in 1979. She remained continuously in power until 1990, though she used the assembly of each House of Commons after a general election to reshuffle her cabinet . Newer parliamentary systems that operate based on
2500-407: A standalone entity or as a hybrid system of the main three. Scholars generally refer to a dictatorship as either a form of authoritarianism or totalitarianism. An autocracy is a system of government in which supreme power is concentrated in the hands of one person, whose decisions are subject to neither external legal restraints nor regularized mechanisms of popular control (except perhaps for
2625-477: A striking parallel with star formation, new structures suddenly appeared, together with a new level of complexity. Like stars, cities and states reorganize and energize the smaller objects within their gravitational field. Another explanation includes the need to properly manage infrastructure projects such as water infrastructure. Historically, this required centralized administration and complex social organisation, as seen in regions like Mesopotamia. However, there
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#17327719565142750-626: A system became particularly prevalent in older British dominions, many of which had their constitutions enacted by the British parliament; such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the Irish Free State and the Union of South Africa . Some of these parliaments were reformed from, or were initially developed as distinct from their original British model: the Australian Senate , for instance, has since its inception more closely reflected
2875-428: A variety of hybrid regimes . Modern classification systems also include monarchies as a standalone entity or as a hybrid system of the main three. Historically prevalent forms of government include monarchy, aristocracy , timocracy , oligarchy , democracy , theocracy , and tyranny . These forms are not always mutually exclusive, and mixed governments are common. The main aspect of any philosophy of government
3000-485: A warning example of the flaws of parliamentary systems that if the United States had a parliamentary system, Donald Trump , as head of government, could have dissolved the United States Congress . The ability for strong parliamentary governments to push legislation through with the ease of fused power systems such as in the United Kingdom, whilst positive in allowing rapid adaptation when necessary e.g.
3125-493: Is a federal constitutional republic, while the former Soviet Union was a federal socialist republic . However self-identification is not objective, and as Kopstein and Lichbach argue, defining regimes can be tricky, especially de facto , when both its government and its economy deviate in practice. For example, Voltaire argued that "the Holy Roman Empire is neither Holy, nor Roman, nor an Empire". In practice,
3250-429: Is a form of government that places power in the hands of a small, elite ruling class , such as a hereditary nobility or privileged caste . This class exercises minority rule , often as a landed timocracy , wealthy plutocracy , or oligarchy . Many monarchies were aristocracies, although in modern constitutional monarchies, the monarch may have little effective power. The term aristocracy could also refer to
3375-597: Is a means by which organizational policies are enforced, as well as a mechanism for determining policy. In many countries, the government has a kind of constitution , a statement of its governing principles and philosophy. While all types of organizations have governance , the term government is often used more specifically to refer to the approximately 200 independent national governments and subsidiary organizations . The main types of modern political systems recognized are democracies , totalitarian regimes , and, sitting between these two, authoritarian regimes with
3500-448: Is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head . The term "federalism" is also used to describe a system of government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and constituent political units, variously called states, provinces or otherwise. Federalism is a system based upon democratic principles and institutions in which
3625-605: Is archaeological evidence that shows similar successes with more egalitarian and decentralized complex societies. Starting at the end of the 17th century, the prevalence of republican forms of government grew. The English Civil War and Glorious Revolution in England, the American Revolution , and the French Revolution contributed to the growth of representative forms of government. The Soviet Union
3750-471: Is called an aristocracy. In other kinds of Commonwealth there can be none: for either one, or more, or all, must have the sovereign power (which I have shown to be indivisible) entire. According to Yale professor Juan José Linz , there a three main types of political systems today: democracies , totalitarian regimes and, sitting between these two, authoritarian regimes with hybrid regimes . Another modern classification system includes monarchies as
3875-436: Is equivalent to that of a vice president which is the second in-command and assumes the presidency in the absence of the president. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime minister is the presiding member and chairman of the cabinet. In a minority of systems, notably in semi-presidential systems ,
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4000-426: Is how political power is obtained, with the two main forms being electoral contest and hereditary succession . A government is the system to govern a state or community. The Columbia Encyclopedia defines government as "a system of social control under which the right to make laws, and the right to enforce them, is vested in a particular group in society". While all types of organizations have governance ,
4125-418: Is in contrast to a presidential system, which features a president who is not fully accountable to the legislature, and cannot be replaced by a simple majority vote. Countries with parliamentary systems may be constitutional monarchies , where a monarch is the head of state while the head of government is almost always a member of parliament , or parliamentary republics , where a mostly ceremonial president
4250-459: Is rather what is often criticized about presidential systems. Fontaine compares United Kingdom's Margaret Thatcher to the United States' Ronald Reagan noting the former head of government was much more powerful despite governing under a parliamentary system. The rise to power of Viktor Orbán in Hungary has been claimed to show how parliamentary systems can be subverted. The situation in Hungary
4375-466: Is the head of state while the head of government is from the legislature. In a few countries, the head of government is also head of state but is elected by the legislature. In bicameral parliaments, the head of government is generally, though not always, a member of the lower house . Parliamentary democracy is the dominant form of government in the European Union , Oceania , and throughout
4500-539: Is the president of Iran, who is not actually a head of state, but the head of the government of Iran. He is referred to as "president" in both the Persian and English languages. In non-Commonwealth countries, the prime minister may be entitled to the style of Excellency like a president. In some Commonwealth countries, prime ministers and former prime ministers are styled Honourable or Right Honourable associated with their position (the prime minister of Australia or
4625-405: Is their ability to allow and accommodate more diverse viewpoints. He states that because "legislators are not compelled to vote against their constituents on matters of local concern, parties can serve as organizational and roll-call cuing vehicles without forcing out dissidents." All current parliamentary democracies see the indirect election or appointment of their head of government. As a result,
4750-741: Is titled Chairman of the government . The Irish prime minister is called the Taoiseach (which is rendered into English as prime minister ), in Israel the prime minister is Rosh HaMemshalah, meaning "head of the government", and the Spanish prime minister is the President of the Government ( Presidente del Gobierno ). The head of government of the People's Republic of China is referred to as
4875-581: Is to be reconceptualised where in times of climatic change the needs and desires of the individual are reshaped to generate sufficiency for all. The quality of a government can be measured by Government effectiveness index , which relates to political efficacy and state capacity . List of forms of government Plato in his book The Republic (375 BC) divided governments into five basic types (four being existing forms and one being Plato's ideal form, which exists "only in speech"): These five regimes progressively degenerate starting with aristocracy at
5000-421: Is typically the case with majority governments, but even a minority government may consist of just one party unable to find a willing coalition partner at the moment. A state that continuously maintains a single-party government within a (nominally) multiparty system possesses a dominant-party system . In a (nondemocratic) one-party system a single ruling party has the (more-or-less) exclusive right to form
5125-648: Is usually called the Office of the Prime Minister or Cabinet Office . The U.K.’s Cabinet Office includes the Prime Minister’s Office. Conversely, some Prime Minister's Offices incorporate the role of Cabinet, while Australia’s Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet joins them at par. In Israel, the prime minister's executive office is officially titled the "Prime Minister's Office" in English, but
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5250-552: The 1708 Scottish Militia Bill . Whilst both the UK and New Zealand have some Acts or parliamentary rules establishing supermajorities or additional legislative procedures for certain legislation, such as previously with the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 (FTPA), these can be bypassed through the enactment of another that amends or ignores these supermajorities away, such as with the Early Parliamentary General Election Act 2019 – bypassing
5375-634: The Abbasid caliphate and the Ottoman Empire . They both had an official title of Grand Vizier simply the Head of the Government which is called Prime Minister nowadays. Grand Vizier was the most powerful person after sultan but sometimes the Grand Vizier of Ottoman Empire was more powerful than sultan himself. The position of Chancellor is the same or comparable in some countries as
5500-628: The Cortes of León . The Corts of Catalonia were the first parliament of Europe that officially obtained the power to pass legislation, apart from the custom. An early example of parliamentary government developed in today's Netherlands and Belgium during the Dutch revolt (1581), when the sovereign, legislative and executive powers were taken over by the States General of the Netherlands from
5625-887: The French Third Republic where the Radical Party and its centre-left allies dominated the government for several decades. However, the rise of Fascism in the 1930s put an end to parliamentary democracy in Italy and Germany, among others. After the Second World War , the defeated fascist Axis powers were occupied by the victorious Allies . In those countries occupied by the Allied democracies (the United States , United Kingdom , and France ) parliamentary constitutions were implemented, resulting in
5750-404: The Holy Roman Empire the position of Archchancellor was the highest dignitary and traces to 860 CE, out of which later derived the positions of head of government such as the modern Chancellor of Germany , who is head of the federal government and an executive prime minister. The power of these ministers depended entirely on the personal favour of the monarch. Although managing the parliament
5875-683: The Indus Valley civilization , and the Yellow River civilization . One reason that explains the emergence of governments includes agriculture. Since the Neolithic Revolution , agriculture has been an efficient method to create food surplus. This enabled people to specialize in non-agricultural activities. Some of them included being able to rule over others as an external authority. Others included social experimentation with diverse governance models. Both these activities formed
6000-755: The Netherlands , Norway , Malaysia , Morocco , Spain , Sweden , Thailand , Canada , Australia , New Zealand , and the United Kingdom ) and in parliamentary republics , in which the head of state is an elected official (such as Bangladesh , Finland , the Czech Republic , France , Greece , Hungary , India , Indonesia (1945–66) , Ireland , Nigeria (1960–66) , Pakistan , Montenegro , Croatia , Bulgaria , Romania , Serbia , Turkey (1923–2018) and Italy ). See also " First Minister ", " Premier ", " Chief Minister ", " Chancellor ", " Taoiseach ", "Minister of State ( Statsminister )", "President of
6125-481: The Northern Ireland Assembly in 2017 and 2022 . A few parliamentary democratic nations such as India , Pakistan and Bangladesh have enacted laws that prohibit floor crossing or switching parties after the election. Under these laws, elected representatives will lose their seat in the parliament if they go against their party in votes. In the UK parliament, a member is free to cross over to
6250-645: The Premier of the State Council . Other common forms include president of the council of ministers (for example in Italy, Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri ), President of the Executive Council, or Minister-President . In the Nordic countries the prime minister is called Statsminister , meaning "Minister of State". In federations , the head of government of a federated entity (such as
6375-549: The Scottish , Northern Irish and Welsh Governments are styled First Minister . Between 1921 and 1972, when Northern Ireland had a majority rule Parliament , the head of government was the prime minister of Northern Ireland . In Bangladesh , the prime minister is called Prodhan Montri , literally meaning "the head of ministers" or "prime minister". In India, the prime minister is called Pradhān Mantrī , literally meaning "the head of ministers" or "prime minister". In Pakistan,
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#17327719565146500-645: The Tory ministers Harley and Viscount Bolingbroke shared power. In the mid 17th century, after the English Civil War (1642–1651), Parliament strengthened its position relative to the monarch then gained more power through the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and passage of the Bill of Rights in 1689. The monarch could no longer establish any law or impose any tax without its permission and thus
6625-747: The US Senate than the British House of Lords ; whereas since 1950 there is no upper house in New Zealand. Many of these countries such as Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados have severed institutional ties to Great Britain by becoming republics with their own ceremonial Presidents, but retain the Westminster system of government. The idea of parliamentary accountability and responsible government spread with these systems. Democracy and parliamentarianism became increasingly prevalent in Europe in
6750-466: The confidence of the legislature . The head of state is typically a ceremonial officer, though they may exercise reserve powers to check the Prime Minister in unusual situations. Under some presidential systems , such as South Korea and Peru , the prime minister is the leader or the most senior member of the cabinet, but not the head of government. As such, in South Korea, the prime minister
6875-489: The fused power system results in a particularly powerful government able to provide change and 'innovate'. The United Kingdom's fused power system is often noted to be advantageous with regard to accountability. The centralised government allows for more transparency as to where decisions originate from, this contrasts with the American system with Treasury Secretary C. Douglas Dillon saying "the president blames Congress,
7000-803: The parliamentary constitutions of Italy and West Germany (now all of Germany) and the 1947 Constitution of Japan . The experiences of the war in the occupied nations where the legitimate democratic governments were allowed to return strengthened the public commitment to parliamentary principles; in Denmark , a new constitution was written in 1953, while a long and acrimonious debate in Norway resulted in no changes being made to that country's strongly entrenched democratic constitution . A parliamentary system may be either bicameral , with two chambers of parliament (or houses) or unicameral , with just one parliamentary chamber. A bicameral parliament usually consists of
7125-437: The presidential system , in which the president (or equivalent) is both the head of state and the head of the government. In some presidential and all semi-presidential systems, such as those of Algeria , Argentina , China , France , Poland , Russia , South Korea or Ukraine , the prime minister is an official generally appointed by the president but usually approved by the legislature and responsible for carrying out
7250-399: The prime minister of Canada , for example). In the United Kingdom, the prime minister and former prime ministers are also often styled Honourable or Right Honourable ; however, this is not due to their position as head of government, but a privilege of being current members of His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council . In the UK, where devolved government is in place, the leaders of
7375-432: The province or territory of Canada , the province of Argentina or the state of Brazil ) is most commonly known as the premier , chief minister , governor or minister-president . It is convention in the English language to call nearly all national heads of government "prime minister" (or sometimes the equivalent term "premier"), except in cases where the head of state and head of government are one position (usually
7500-657: The "Tyranny" of French Absolute Monarchy; therefore, being implicitly compared with Richelieu was no compliment to Walpole. Over time, however, the title became honorific and remains so in the 21st century. The position of a head of government separate from the head of state, or as the most important government administrator or minister after the monarch in rank developed in multiple countries separate from each other. The names given could be "prime minister", although other terms were also used such as "chief minister", "grand chancellor", "chancellor", "grand vizier", "counselor", and others. The literal title itself can be traced back to
7625-576: The 2/3rd supermajority required for an early dissolution under the FTPA -, which enabled the early dissolution for the 2019 general election . Parliamentarism metrics allow a quantitative comparison of the strength of parliamentary systems for individual countries. One parliamentarism metric is the Parliamentary Powers Index. Parliamentary systems like that found in the United Kingdom are widely considered to be more flexible, allowing
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#17327719565147750-458: The Benelux countries require a sitting member of the legislature to resign such positions upon being appointed to the executive. Furthermore, there are variations as to what conditions exist (if any) for the government to have the right to dissolve the parliament: The parliamentary system can be contrasted with a presidential system which operates under a stricter separation of powers, whereby
7875-573: The British model. Bangladesh's constitution clearly outlines the functions and powers of the prime minister , and also details the process of his/her appointment and dismissal. The People's Republic of China constitution set a premier just one place below the National People's Congress in China. Premier read as ( Simplified Chinese : 总理; pinyin : Zŏnglĭ) in Chinese. Canada has
8000-671: The Congress blames the president, and the public remains confused and disgusted with government in Washington". Furthermore, ministers of the U.K. cabinet are subject to weekly Question Periods in which their actions/policies are scrutinised; no such regular check on the government exists in the U.S. system. A 2001 World Bank study found that parliamentary systems are associated with less corruption. In his 1867 book The English Constitution , Walter Bagehot praised parliamentary governments for producing serious debates, for allowing for
8125-581: The Government", "President of the Council of Ministers" and " Secretary of State ": alternative titles usually equivalent in meaning to, or translated as, "prime minister". Both Indonesia and Nigeria lost their positions as prime ministers in 1966. Brazil , Iran , the Philippines and Turkey also lost their positions as prime ministers. Chile , Mexico , Switzerland and the United States never had positions as prime ministers. This contrasts with
8250-511: The House of Commons became a part of the government. It is at this point that a modern style of prime minister begins to emerge. A tipping point in the evolution of the prime ministership came with the death of Anne in 1714 and the accession of George I to the throne. George spoke no English, spent much of his time at his home in Hanover , and had neither knowledge of, nor interest in, the details of British government. In these circumstances it
8375-461: The Monarch or their Governor General normally performs executive government (as King- or Governor-in-Council ). The Constitution Act, 1982 , adds passing reference to the " Prime Minister of Canada " [French: premier ministre du Canada ] but as detail of conferences of federal and provincial first ministers .) Czech Republic's constitution clearly outlines the functions and powers of
8500-596: The Second World War, Winston Churchill was also Minister of Defence (although there was then no Ministry of Defence ). Another example is the Thirty-fourth government of Israel (2015–2019) , when Benjamin Netanyahu at one point served as the prime minister and minister of Communications , Foreign Affairs , Regional Cooperation , Economy , Defense and Interior . The term "prime minister"
8625-772: The Soviet Union was a centralized autocratic one-party state under Joseph Stalin . Identifying a form of government is also difficult because many political systems originate as socio-economic movements and are then carried into governments by parties naming themselves after those movements; all with competing political ideologies. Experience with those movements in power, and the strong ties they may have to particular forms of government, can cause them to be considered as forms of government in themselves. Other complications include general non-consensus or deliberate " distortion or bias " of reasonable technical definitions of political ideologies and associated forms of governing, due to
8750-491: The U.S. system in which the president directly exercises executive authority. Bahrain 's former prime minister, Sheikh Khalifah bin Sulman Al Khalifah , occupied the post for about 50 years, from 1970 to November 2020, making him the longest serving non-elected prime minister. The post of prime minister may be encountered both in constitutional monarchies (such as Belgium , Denmark , Japan , Luxembourg ,
8875-546: The United States has been chiefly associated with right-wing politics and the Republican Party . However, during the era of segregation many Southern Democrats were conservatives, and they played a key role in the conservative coalition that controlled Congress from 1937 to 1963. Opinions vary by individuals concerning the types and properties of governments that exist. "Shades of gray" are commonplace in any government and its corresponding classification. Even
9000-429: The activities of associated government officials and candidates for office. In a multiparty system of government, multiple political parties have the capacity to gain control of government offices, typically by competing in elections , although the effective number of parties may be limited. A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties together holding an absolute majority of seats in
9125-535: The approval of parliament. As well as being head of government, being prime minister may require holding other roles or posts—the prime minister of the United Kingdom , for example, is also First Lord of the Treasury and Minister for the Civil Service . In some cases, prime ministers may choose to hold additional ministerial posts (e.g. when the portfolio is critical to that government's mandate): during
9250-402: The basis of governments. These governments gradually became more complex as agriculture supported larger and denser populations, creating new interactions and social pressures that the government needed to control. David Christian explains As farming populations gathered in larger and denser communities, interactions between different groups increased and the social pressure rose until, in
9375-486: The chief of the executive under either a monarch or a president in a republican form of government . In parliamentary systems of government (be they constitutional monarchies or parliamentary republics ), the Prime Minister (or occasionally a similar post with a different title, such as the Chancellor of Germany ) is the most powerful politician and the functional leader of the state, by virtue of commanding
9500-512: The council" or "chancellor" were adopted, but the essentials of the office were the same. In the late 20th century, many of the world's countries had prime ministers or equivalent ministers, holding office under either constitutional monarchies or ceremonial presidents. The main exceptions to this system include Switzerland and the United States, as well as the presidential republics in Latin America, such as Chile and Mexico, modelled on
9625-623: The current Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte and his party the VVD 's 4 terms in office, despite their peak support reaching only 26.6% in 2012 . National Assembly elects the President who appoints the Prime Minister Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state . In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature , executive , and judiciary . Government
9750-463: The directives of the president and managing the civil service. The premier of the Republic of China (Taiwan) is also appointed by the president but does not require any approval by the legislature. Appointment of the prime minister of France does not require any approval by the parliament either, but the parliament may force the resignation of the government. In these systems, it is possible for
9875-408: The election date. Conversely, flexibility in the timing of parliamentary elections can avoid periods of legislative gridlock that can occur in a fixed period presidential system. In any case, voters ultimately have the power to choose whether to vote for the ruling party or someone else. According to Arturo Fontaine , parliamentary systems in Europe have yielded very powerful heads of government which
10000-429: The electorate has limited power to remove or install the person or party wielding the most power. Although strategic voting may enable the party of the prime minister to be removed or empowered, this can be at the expense of voters first preferences in the many parliamentary systems utilising first past the post , or having no effect in dislodging those parties who consistently form part of a coalition government, as with
10125-491: The executive does not form part of—nor is appointed by—the parliamentary or legislative body. In such a system, parliaments or congresses do not select or dismiss heads of government, and governments cannot request an early dissolution as may be the case for parliaments (although the parliament may still be able to dissolve itself, as in the case of Cyprus ). There also exists the semi-presidential system that draws on both presidential systems and parliamentary systems by combining
10250-574: The former British Empire , with other users scattered throughout Africa and Asia . A similar system, called a council–manager government , is used by many local governments in the United States . The first parliaments date back to Europe in the Middle Ages. The earliest example of a parliament is disputed, especially depending how the term is defined. For example, the Icelandic Althing consisting of prominent individuals among
10375-570: The framework of representative democracy, but the constitution limits majority rule , usually through the provision by all of certain universal rights , such as freedom of speech or freedom of association . A republic is a form of government in which the country is considered a "public matter" ( Latin : res publica ), not the private concern or property of the rulers, and where offices of states are subsequently directly or indirectly elected or appointed rather than inherited. The people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over
10500-483: The free landowners of the various districts of the Icelandic Commonwealth first gathered around the year 930 (it conducted its business orally, with no written record allowing an exact date). The first written record of a parliament, in particular in the sense of an assembly separate from the population called in presence of a King was 1188 Alfonso IX, King of Leon (Spain) convened the three states in
10625-811: The functions and number of branches. An independent, parallel distribution of powers between branches of government is the separation of powers . A shared, intersecting, or overlapping distribution of powers is the fusion of powers . Governments are often organised into three branches with separate powers: a legislature, an executive, and a judiciary; this is sometimes called the trias politica model. However, in parliamentary and semi-presidential systems , branches of government often intersect, having shared membership and overlapping functions. Many governments have fewer or additional branches, such as an independent electoral commission or auditory branch. Presently, most governments are administered by members of an explicitly constituted political party which coordinates
10750-628: The government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. A common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of state is not a monarch. Montesquieu included both democracies , where all the people have a share in rule, and aristocracies or oligarchies , where only some of the people rule, as republican forms of government. Other terms used to describe different republics include democratic republic , parliamentary republic , semi-presidential republic , presidential republic , federal republic , people's republic , and Islamic republic . Federalism
10875-401: The government, and the formation of other parties may be obstructed or illegal. In some cases, a government may have a non-partisan system , as is the case with absolute monarchy or non-partisan democracy . Democracy is the most popular form of government. More than half of the nations in the world are democracies—97 of 167, as of 2021. However, the world is becoming more authoritarian with
11000-555: The implicit threat of a coup d'état or mass insurrection ). Absolute monarchy is a historically prevalent form of autocracy, wherein a monarch governs as a singular sovereign with no limitation on royal prerogative . Most absolute monarchies are hereditary , however some, notably the Holy See , are elected by an electoral college (such as the college of cardinals , or prince-electors ). Other forms of autocracy include tyranny , despotism , and dictatorship . Aristocracy
11125-582: The king of unlimited authority and the second, in 1265, included ordinary citizens from the towns . Later, in the 17th century, the Parliament of England pioneered some of the ideas and systems of liberal democracy culminating in the Glorious Revolution and passage of the Bill of Rights 1689 . In the Kingdom of Great Britain , the monarch, in theory, chaired the cabinet and chose ministers. In practice, King George I 's inability to speak English led to
11250-408: The king, and also that when the cabinet had agreed on a policy, all ministers must defend it in public, or resign. As a later prime minister, Lord Melbourne , said, "It matters not what we say, gentlemen, so long as we all say the same thing." Walpole always denied that he was "prime minister", and throughout the 18th century parliamentarians and legal scholars continued to deny that any such position
11375-536: The largest member of a coalition - the majority of seats in the lower house of parliament, though this is not a requirement either; for example, following the 2018 Latvian parliamentary election , after two failed attempts by larger parties to form a coalition headed by them, the leader of the smallest party in parliament - Krišjānis Kariņš - was eventually appointed as a compromise candidate. Italy has seen several emergency technocratic governments , such as Carlo Azeglio Ciampi 's and Mario Draghi 's governments, where
11500-553: The legislative power of their Parliaments, where any newly approved Act shall take precedence over all prior Acts. All laws are equally unentrenched, wherein judicial review may not outright annul nor amend them, as frequently occurs in other parliamentary systems like Germany . Whilst the head of state for both nations ( Monarch , and or Governor General ) has the de jure power to withhold assent to any bill passed by their Parliament, this check has not been exercised in Britain since
11625-429: The literature of classical antiquity , including Plato 's Ship of State . In British English , "government" sometimes refers to what's also known as a " ministry " or an " administration ", i.e., the policies and government officials of a particular executive or governing coalition . Finally, government is also sometimes used in English as a synonym for rule or governance. In other languages, cognates may have
11750-611: The monarch, King Philip II of Spain . Significant developments Kingdom of Great Britain , in particular in the period 1707 to 1800 and its contemporary, the Parliamentary System in Sweden between 1721 and 1772 , and later in Europe and elsewhere in the 19th and 20th centuries, with the expansion of like institutions, and beyond In England, Simon de Montfort is remembered as one of the figures relevant later for convening two famous parliaments. The first , in 1258, stripped
11875-469: The most liberal democracies limit rival political activity to one extent or another while the most tyrannical dictatorships must organize a broad base of support thereby creating difficulties for " pigeonholing " governments into narrow categories. Examples include the claims of the United States as being a plutocracy rather than a democracy since some American voters believe elections are being manipulated by wealthy Super PACs . Some consider that government
12000-555: The name of an alternative prime minister; if the motion of no confidence is successful, the alternative prime minister automatically takes office in place of the incumbent government, which cannot appeal this replacement to the electorate. In Australia , the prime minister is expected to step down if they lose the majority support of their party under a spill motion as have many such as Tony Abbott , Julia Gillard , Kevin Rudd and Malcolm Turnbull . The prime minister's executive office
12125-677: The nationalisation of services during the world wars, in the opinion of some commentators does have its drawbacks. For instance, the flip-flopping of legislation back and forth as the majority in parliament changed between the Conservatives and Labour over the period 1940–1980, contesting over the nationalisation and privatisation of the British Steel Industry resulted in major instability for the British steel sector. In R. Kent Weaver's book Are Parliamentary Systems Better? , he writes that an advantage of presidential systems
12250-463: The nature of politics in the modern era. For example: The meaning of "conservatism" in the United States has little in common with the way the word's definition is used elsewhere. As Ribuffo notes, "what Americans now call conservatism much of the world calls liberalism or neoliberalism "; a "conservative" in Finland would be labeled a " socialist " in the United States. Since the 1950s conservatism in
12375-550: The non- peasant , non-servant, and non- city classes in the feudal system . Democracy is a system of government where citizens exercise power by voting and deliberation . In a direct democracy , the citizenry as a whole directly forms a participatory governing body and vote directly on each issue. In indirect democracy , the citizenry governs indirectly through the selection of representatives or delegates from among themselves, typically by election or, less commonly, by sortition . These select citizens then meet to form
12500-456: The original Hebrew term can also be translated as the Prime Minister's Ministry. The Prime Minister's Department is also used, as is Cabinet Department. Wilfried Martens , who served as Prime Minister of Belgium, described his role as follows: In many cases, though commonly used, "prime minister" is not the official title of the office-holder. In the Russian constitution , the prime minister
12625-441: The others, so the term was no longer in use. In the 18th century in the United Kingdom, members of parliament disparagingly used the title in reference to Sir Robert Walpole (whose official title was First Lord of the Treasury ). During the whole of the 18th century, Britain was involved in a prolonged conflict with France, periodically bursting into all-out war, and Britons took outspoken pride in their "Liberty" as contrasted to
12750-405: The parliament, in contrast to a minority government in which they have only a plurality of seats and often depend on a confidence-and-supply arrangement with other parties. A coalition government is one in which multiple parties cooperate to form a government as part of a coalition agreement . In a single-party government, a single party forms a government without the support of a coalition, as
12875-458: The people as a whole (a democracy, such as a republic). Thomas Hobbes stated on their classification: The difference of Commonwealths consisteth in the difference of the sovereign , or the person representative of all and every one of the multitude. And because the sovereignty is either in one man, or in an assembly of more than one; and into that assembly either every man hath right to enter, or not everyone, but certain men distinguished from
13000-743: The power of the post. The title "prime minister" was first referred to on government documents during the administration of Benjamin Disraeli but did not appear in the formal British Order of precedence until 1905. The prestige of British institutions in the 19th century and the growth of the British Empire saw the British model of cabinet government, headed by a prime minister, widely copied, both in other European countries and in British colonial territories as they developed self-government. In some places alternative titles such as "premier", "chief minister", "first minister of state", "president of
13125-432: The power to govern is shared between national and provincial/state governments, creating what is often called a federation . Proponents are often called federalists . Governments are typically organised into distinct institutions constituting branches of government each with particular powers , functions, duties, and responsibilities. The distribution of powers between these institutions differs between governments, as do
13250-410: The power, rarely exercise it). Where they lose a vote of confidence , have a motion of no confidence passed against them, or where they lose supply, most constitutional systems require either: The latter in effect allows the government to appeal the opposition of parliament to the electorate . However, in many jurisdictions a head of state may refuse a parliamentary dissolution, requiring
13375-428: The president and the prime minister to be from different political parties if the legislature is controlled by a party different from that of the president. When it arises, such a state of affairs is usually referred to as (political) cohabitation . In parliamentary systems a prime minister may enter into office by several means. In older, convention-based parliamentary systems , prime ministers are not appointed for
13500-437: The prime minister and government are appointed and whether the government needs the explicit approval of the parliament, rather than just the absence of its disapproval. While most parliamentary systems such as India require the prime minister and other ministers to be a member of the legislature, in other countries like Canada and the United Kingdom this only exists as a convention, some other countries including Norway, Sweden and
13625-422: The prime minister is referred to as Wazir-e-Azam , meaning "grand vizier". The position, power and status of prime ministers differ depending on the age of the constitution. Algeria's constitution (1962) lists the powers, functions and duties of the prime minister of Algeria . Australia's constitution makes no mention of a prime minister of Australia and the office only exists by convention, based on
13750-456: The prime minister was a non-partisan expert backed by the confidence and supply of a broad cross-section of the parliament . In parliamentary systems, governments are generally required to have the confidence of the lower house of parliament (though a small minority of parliaments, by giving a right to block supply to upper houses , in effect make the cabinet responsible to both houses, though in reality upper houses, even when they have
13875-416: The resignation of the prime minister and his or her government. In most modern parliamentary systems, the prime minister is the person who decides when to request a parliamentary dissolution. Older constitutions often vest this power in the cabinet . In the United Kingdom, for example, the tradition whereby it is the prime minister who requests a dissolution of parliament dates back to 1918. Prior to then, it
14000-526: The responsibility for chairing cabinet to go to the leading minister, literally the prime or first minister, Robert Walpole . The gradual democratisation of parliament with the broadening of the voting franchise increased parliament's role in controlling government, and in deciding whom the king could ask to form a government. By the 19th century, the Great Reform Act of 1832 led to parliamentary dominance, with its choice invariably deciding who
14125-461: The rest; it is manifest there can be but three kinds of Commonwealth. For the representative must need to be one man or more; and if more, then it is the assembly of all, or but of a part. When the representative is one man, then is the Commonwealth a monarchy; when an assembly of all that will come together, then it is a democracy or popular Commonwealth; when an assembly of a part only, then it
14250-405: The same effect; the presidential election, and the legislative election, and that the president's party has the legislative supermajority required for constitutional amendments. Safeguards against this situation implementable in both systems include the establishment of an upper house or a requirement for external ratification of constitutional amendments such as a referendum . Fontaine also notes as
14375-401: The top and tyranny at the bottom. In his Politics , Aristotle elaborates on Plato's five regimes discussing them in relation to the government of one, of the few, and of the many. From this follows the classification of forms of government according to which people have the authority to rule: either one person (an autocracy , such as monarchy), a select group of people (an aristocracy), or
14500-475: The word government is often used more specifically to refer to the approximately 200 independent national governments on Earth, as well as their subsidiary organizations, such as state and provincial governments as well as local governments . The word government derives from the Greek verb κυβερνάω [ kubernáo ] meaning to steer with a gubernaculum (rudder), the metaphorical sense being attested in
14625-762: The years after World War I , partially imposed by the democratic victors, the United States, Great Britain and France, on the defeated countries and their successors, notably Germany's Weimar Republic and the First Austrian Republic . Nineteenth-century urbanisation , the Industrial Revolution and modernism had already made the parliamentarist demands of the Radicals and the emerging movement of social democrats increasingly impossible to ignore; these forces came to dominate many states that transitioned to parliamentarism, particularly in
14750-566: Was according to Fontaine allowed by the deficient separation of powers that characterises parliamentary and semi-presidential systems. Once Orbán's party got two-thirds of the seats in Parliament in a single election, a supermajority large enough to amend the Hungarian constitution, there was no institution that was able to balance the concentration of power. In a presidential system it would require at least two separate elections to create
14875-592: Was among the necessary skills of holding high office, they did not depend on a parliamentary majority for their power. Although there was a cabinet , it was appointed entirely by the monarch, and the monarch usually presided over its meetings. The monarch could dismiss the minister at any time, or worse: Cromwell was executed and Clarendon driven into exile when they lost favour. Kings sometimes divided power equally between two or more ministers to prevent one minister from becoming too powerful. Late in Anne's reign, for example,
15000-593: Was inevitable that the king's first minister would become the de facto head of the government. From 1721, this was the Whig politician Robert Walpole , who held office for twenty-one years. Walpole chaired cabinet meetings, appointed all the other ministers, dispensed the royal patronage and packed the House of Commons with his supporters. Under Walpole, the doctrine of cabinet solidarity developed. Walpole required that no minister other than himself have private dealings with
15125-597: Was known to the Constitution. George II and George III made strenuous efforts to reclaim the personal power of the monarch, but the increasing complexity and expense of government meant that a minister who could command the loyalty of the Commons was increasingly necessary. The long tenure of the wartime prime minister William Pitt the Younger (1783–1801), combined with the mental illness of George III, consolidated
15250-547: Was prime minister and the complexion of the government. Other countries gradually adopted what came to be called the Westminster system of government, with an executive answerable to the lower house of a bicameral parliament, and exercising, in the name of the head of state, powers nominally vested in the head of state – hence the use of phrases such as Her Majesty's government (in constitutional monarchies) or His Excellency's government (in parliamentary republics ). Such
15375-593: Was the entire government that made the request. Similarly, though the modern 1937 Irish constitution grants to the Taoiseach the right to make the request, the earlier 1922 Irish Free State Constitution vested the power in the Executive Council (the then name for the Irish cabinet). Some systems, such as Germany and Spain , require motions of no confidence to be constructive : i.e., they must include
15500-502: Was the first large country to have a Communist government. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall , liberal democracy has become an even more prevalent form of government. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, there was a significant increase in the size and scale of government at the national level. This included the regulation of corporations and the development of the welfare state . In political science, it has long been
15625-524: Was used as (vazîr-i aʾzam) or the Grand Vizier in 8th century by the Abbasid caliphate . in 17th century sources referring to Cardinal Richelieu , after he was named premier ministre to head the French royal council in 1624. The title was used alongside the principal ministre d'État ("chief minister of the state") more as a job description. After 1661, Louis XIV and his descendants refused to allow one of their Ministers to be more important than
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