Head of State Quiz

Head of State: Types, Powers, and Examples

• Head of state is the public persona who officially represents a state in its unity and legitimacy.

• The head of state may be a ceremonial figurehead or concurrently the head of government.

• The role of the head of state varies depending on the country's form of government and separation of powers.

• In a parliamentary system, the head of state usually has mostly ceremonial powers, with a separate head of government.

• In a semi-presidential system, both heads of state and government are the de facto leaders of the nation.

• A president in presidential systems is both the head of state and head of government.

• In one-party ruling communist states, the position of president has no tangible powers by itself.

• Four major types of heads of state can be distinguished: constitutional monarchies, parliamentary republics, parliamentary constitutional monarchies, and presidential systems.

• In parliamentary systems, the head of state may be merely the nominal chief executive officer, heading the executive branch of the state, and possessing limited executive power.

• In semi-presidential systems, the president is usually obliged to select someone from the opposition to become prime minister in the event of cohabitation.

• The presidential system provides for a head of state who is not only in theory but in practice chief executive, operating separately from, and independent from, the legislature.

• Most presidents in such countries are selected by democratic means (popular direct or indirect election).Summary Title: Understanding the Role of a Head of State

• The United States considered moving from a presidential system to a semi-presidential or parliamentary one in the 1870s, but the presidency reasserted its political dominance by the early 20th century.

• In certain states under Marxist-Leninist constitutions of the constitutionally socialist state type, the leader of the legislative branch was considered to be the closest common equivalent of a head of state as a natural person.

• The head of state is the highest-ranking constitutional position in a sovereign state and has some or all of the symbolic, executive, diplomatic, and military roles listed below.

• The most important role of the modern head of state is being a living national symbol of the state.

• Heads of state often greet important foreign visitors, assume a host role during a state visit, and attend various national events to render lustre to the occasion.

• The head of state usually appoints most or all the key officials in the government, including the head of government and other cabinet ministers, key judicial figures, and all major office holders in the civil service, foreign service, and commissioned officers in the military.

• The head of state may also dismiss office-holders.

• The head of state is designated the high contracting party in international treaties on behalf of the state and signs them either personally or has them signed in his/her name by ministers.

• A head of state is often explicitly designated as the commander-in-chief of the military.

• In reality, the category to which each head of state belongs is assessed not by theory but by practice.

• The strengthening of the Reigning Prince's powers in Liechtenstein has moved it into the semi-presidential category.

• South Africa, Nauru, and Botswana have heads of state who are similar in principle to a head of government in a parliamentary system but are also recognized as the head of state.The Role of a Head of State: Powers, Titles, and Historical Perspectives

• The head of state is the highest-ranking official in a country, responsible for representing the nation and exercising various powers.

• In a constitutional monarchy or non-executive presidency, the head of state may hold ultimate authority over the armed forces but will only exercise their authority on the advice of responsible ministers.

• In military dictatorships, the position of commander-in-chief is obvious, as all authority in such a government derives from the application of military force.

• Some countries with a parliamentary system designate officials other than the head of state with command-in-chief powers.

• It is usual that the head of state is the one who opens the annual sessions of the legislature and reports to the legislature on the present national status.

• Most countries require that all bills passed by the legislature be signed into law by the head of state, who retains certain discretionary powers in relation to bills.

• A head of state is often empowered to summon and dissolve the country's legislature on their own initiative or on the advice of the head of government.

• Heads of state can grant titles and honors, have immunity, reserve powers, and the right of pardon.

• In a republic, the head of state usually bears the title of President, but some have or have had other titles.

• There are also cases in which the exact title and definition of the office of head of state have been vague or constitutionally awarded to a post of another formal nature.

• Whenever a head of state is not available for any reason, constitutional provisions may allow the role to fall temporarily to an assigned person or collective body.

• In early modern Europe, a single person was often monarch simultaneously of separate states, a retrospective label for those cases where the states were governed entirely separately known as a composite monarchy.Types of Heads of State

• Monarchs are the most common type of head of state, with a hereditary succession within a royal family tracing its origin through a historical dynasty or bloodline.

• Presidents are elected by the people or by a special college of electors, either directly or indirectly through members of the legislature.

• Governor-Generals are appointed by the sovereign as representatives to exercise almost all the Royal Prerogative according to established constitutional authority.

• Religious heads of state include the Pope, the Bishop of Urgell, the Supreme Leader of Iran, and the Dalai Lama.

• Multiple or collective heads of state can be co-equal individuals or a corporate person that embodies the functions of head of state.

• Legitimacy of a head of state can be established in different ways, including by fiction or fiat, divine appointment, social contract, constitution, hereditary succession, election, appointment, or force or revolution.

Examples of Heads of State

• An example of a governor-general departing from constitutional convention by acting unilaterally occurred in 1926 when Canada's governor-general refused the head of government's formal advice requesting a dissolution of parliament and a general election.
• In the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis, the governor-general unexpectedly dismissed the prime minister in order to break a stalemate between the House of Representatives and Senate over money bills.
• The National Government of the Republic of China, established in 1928, had a panel of about 40 people as collective head of state.
• The Sovereignty Council of Sudan comprises 11 ministers who together have exercised all governmental functions for Sudan since the fall of President Omar Al-Bashir.
• The Pope was once sovereign pontiff and head of state of the politically important Papal States. After Italian unification, the pope remains head of state of Vatican City.
• The Dalai Lamas were both political and spiritual leaders ("god-king") of Tibet from the time of the 5th Dalai Lama until the political retirement of the 14th Dalai Lama in 2011.
• In Hinduism, certain dynasties adopted a title expressing their positions as "servant" of a patron deity of the state, but in the sense of a viceroy under an absentee god-king, ruling "in the name of" the patron god(ess), such as Patmanabha Dasa (servant of Vishnu) in the case of the Maharaja of Travancore.
• The position of head of state can be established in different ways, including by fiction or fiat, divine appointment, social contract, constitution, hereditary succession, election, appointment, or force or revolution.