II. Types of GovernmentII. Types of GovernmentII. Types of GovernmentII. Types of Government

A. Confederation

• Confederation – A loose association of states

• Characterized by a weak central government

• Only has power granted by member states

• U.S. has had two – Articles of Confederation and Confederate States of America

B. Autocracy • Autocracy – Single person holds

unlimited power• Most common form of government

in history• Authoritarian – Have unlimited

authority over people

C. Types of Autocracy • 1) Dictatorship – Absolute power is

exercised by one person who usually obtains power through force

• Dictare (Latin) – “Give commands”• Totalitarian – Total control over the

lives of people

Totalitarian Government

Modern Autocratic Leaders

• 2) Monarchy – Government ruled by kings and queens

• Absolute Monarchy – Have complete control of the people– Saudi Arabia

• Constitutional Monarchy – Share power with elected officials– Great Britain and Japan

D. Oligarchy•Oligarchy – Power to rule is

held by a small, usually self-appointed elite group

• Most communist are oligarchies

• China

E. Democracy

•Demos (Greek) – “People”•Kratic (Greek)

“Rule/authority”•Democracy – Government

that functions by the authority of the people

“Government of the people, by the people, and for the people”

Abraham Lincoln

Lincoln Video

F. Two Types of Democracy

• 1) Direct Democracy (Pure Democracy) – Political decisions are made by all people instead of elected representatives

• Used in ancient Greek city-states• Not practical for modern society

• 2) Representative Democracy (Republic) – People elect officials to carry out the work of government

• Type of government found in most countries today

• Founding Fathers admired the Roman system of government where the upper classes led the government and military

• Found the direct democracy of ancient Greece less appealing

• Many believed that history illustrated the dangers of democracy

G. Two Types of Representative

Democracy• 1) Presidential – Lawmaking and

law-enforcing branches of government are separate but equal

• Government found in U.S.A• Federalism – Powers of

government are divided between central and local governments

• 2) Parliamentary – Lawmaking and law-enforcing branches of government overlap

• Found in Great Britain • Unitary Government – All

powers of government belong to a single central agency