Types of Government

• Dictatorship– Power is held by one

person or a small group of people.

– Those who rule are not held responsible to the will of the people.

– Sovereign power held by the dictator

• Representative– Power is held by the

majority.

– Supreme authority rests with the people.

– Sovereign power held by the people

Autocracy

Power to rule is in the hands of a single person such as a dictator.

MonarchyAn autocracy ruled by a king,

queen, or emperor.

OligarchyRule by a small group

TheocracyRule by religious leaders

Democracy People rule directly

RepublicVoters elect their leaders

Unitary SystemNational government has ALL powers- (no meaningful state or local governments)- Great Britain has a unitary government

Federal SystemPower is divided between national and state or

local governments- (state and/or local governments have their own

substantial powers)- The United States has a federal government

Unitary System

All Powers held by national government

Federal System

National government has some powers

State governments have some powers

County governments have some powers

City governments have some powers

- - - Powers are divided up - - -

Confederation

An alliance, or loose union of independent states

Examples of confederations:

- The United States under The Articles of Confederation

- The Confederate States of America during the Civil War

- The European Union

Chapter 1, Section 2Chapter 1, Section 2

What is the role of the individual in a Democracy or Republic?

• What does the individual give up?

• What does the individual gain?

Chapter 1, Section 3Chapter 1, Section 3

American representative government rests on these basic notions:

(1) A recognition of the fundamental worth and dignity of every person;

(2) A respect for the equality of all persons;(3) A faith in majority rule and an insistence

upon minority rights;(4) An acceptance of the necessity of

compromise; and(5) An insistence upon the widest possible

degree of individual freedom.

Majority v. Minority Rule

• What are the hazards of strict populist (majority) rule?

• What are the hazards of strict minority rule?

Equality

• Thomas Jefferson writes “all men are created equal” in The Declaration of Independence.

• What two types of equality does he mean?

• Whose ideas is he borrowing directly?

1) Equal opportunity for all persons

2) Equal treatment for all persons under the law

John Locke, from Two Treatises on Government