Government Types: what is the role of the citizen in choosing the

leaders of the country?

Government/Civic Understandings

SS7CG3: Compare and contrast various forms of government.

a. Explain citizen participation in autocratic and democratic governments [i.e., the role of citizens in choosing the leaders of Israel (parliamentary democracy), Saudi Arabia

(autocratic monarchy), and Turkey (parliamentary democracy)].

b. Describe the two predominant forms of democratic governments: parliamentary and presidential.

Types of governments are based on two key questions:

1. Who governs?

2. What is the level of citizen participation?

•There are three types of governments: (2 we will talk about)

- Autocracy, Oligarchy and Democracy

Citizen Participation

•In each country, the people have different rights to participate in the government• In some countries, any citizen can run for office or vote in elections

• In other countries there are restrictions placed on who can run for office and who can vote

•There are also countries where no citizen can vote and there are no elections

Autocracy

•Oldest form of government

•one of the most common forms of government.

Autocracies

1. Dictatorship- force

2. Absolute Monarchy- king, queen, emperor

3. Constitutional Monarchy*

Autocracy- Who Governs?•Single ruler with unlimited power through inheritance or ruthless use of military and police force.

Autocracy- What is the level of citizen participation?

•No ability to participate in the selection of the ruler or in the creation of laws.

Autocracy- Benefit

•Decisions for a country can be made quickly.•Because only 1 person is making the decisions

Autocracy- Drawbacks•Needs of the people may be ignored

•or unheard.

•We will draw the picture at the end!

Autocracies of the World:

Democracy •puts power with the citizens

•Individual freedom is encouraged

•Free elections held

•Majority rules

Democracy- Types 1. Parliamentary

2. Presidential

(you will need to be able to spell these correctly)

Parliamentary Democracy

•Real executive power held in a cabinet composed of members of the legislature.

•People in the cabinet are responsible for the legislature (Prime Minister may be elected by the legislature-Parliament)

•Parliament may have a different name (Knesset of Israel)

Parliamentary Democracy-(voters)

•Elect the legislative branch who then select the executive branch

Presidential Democracy•President is independent from the legislature.

•executive branch exists separately from the legislature.

Presidential Democracy- voters

•Elect legislators and elect (indirectly) the president

Parliamentary

System

Presidential

System

Executive Legislative

CitizensCitizens

Legislative

Executive

Elect

Select

•Go back and draw the following pictures for autocracy, oligarchy, and democracy.

How Governments Determine Citizen Participation

DemocracyAutocracy

Go

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Cit

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n P

art

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Go

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t P

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Cit

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High Participation High Participation

Low or No Participation Low or No Participation

•Remember there are 3 types of autocracies:

Autocracy- Dictatorship • Ideas of a single leader glorified.

• Leader has not been elected and uses force to control social and economic life.

•Government is NOT responsible to the people.

•People lack the power to limit their rulers.

•EX: - Adolf Hitler- Saddam Hussein

Autocracy- Absolute Monarchy •A Monarchy has a king or a queen, emperor, etc.

•power is usually inherited or passed down from family members.

•monarch has absolute power. • (don’t have to consult anyone)

•People lack the power to limit their rulers

•EX: King of Saudi Arabia

Autocracy- Constitutional Monarchy•Kings, queens, emperors share power with elected legislatures.

•generally the Kings are nothing more than figure heads.

• the government is a democratic one that limits the monarch’s power.

•EX: Great Britain