Types of Government

What is a monarchy?

• A government where citizens vote on all major decisions.

• A government led by a small group of people based on wealth or family.

• A government headed by one person, such as a king or queen, who exercises supreme authority.

• A government where power is shared among several individuals.

What characterizes an absolute monarchy?

• Citizens elect the monarch.

• The monarch has limited power by law.

• The monarch has unlimited power.

• Power is shared with a representative body.

What is a dictatorship?

• A government where power is inherited.

• A government where the ruler is seen as divine.

• A government ruled by the people.

• A system of rule in which one person or a small group can hold unlimited power.

What is a characteristic of a totalitarian regime?

• The government has no formal limits but is restrained by other social institutions.

• The dictator holds ultimate authority and government tightly controls all aspects of life.

• Citizens have the power to make major government decisions.

• Power is distributed among various levels of government.

What is an oligarchy?

• A government led by a monarch.

• A government where a small group of people make decisions for their own benefit.

• A government where power is divided among federal and state levels.

• A government where power is held by the majority.

What is a theocracy?

• A government based on religious or divine guidance.

• A government where leaders are elected by the people.

• A government that operates without a monarch.

• A government where power is decentralized.

What is a direct democracy?

• A system where people make major decisions by majority rule.

• A government where power is divided among different branches.

• A system where representatives make decisions on behalf of the people.

• A government where power is held by a single ruler.

What is a republic?

• An indirect form of democracy that places political decision-making away from the people.

• A system where power is concentrated in the hands of a small elite.

• A government where the monarch has unlimited power.

• A government ruled directly by a dictator.

What is a federal system?

• A system where independent states form a loose alliance.

• A system where power is shared between national, state, and regional governments.

• A system where all power is held by a central authority.

• A system where the government operates without any states or regions.

What are the advantages of a presidential system?

• It is easy to remove an unsuitable president.

• The president is elected by the people for a fixed term and cannot be dismissed easily.

• There are many checks and balances between the branches of government.

• The president has limited independence from other branches.