Political Systems Notes PDF

Political Systems Objective In this lesson, you will examine and compare historical and contemporary political systems and governments. Government, State, and Nation Throughout human history, governments have been a way for people to organize their societies. St...

Political Systems Objective In this lesson, you will examine and compare historical and contemporary political systems and governments. Government, State, and Nation Throughout human history, governments have been a way for people to organize their societies. State single A state is a region controlled by a __________ political entity. A state is also internal sovereign, meaning it controls its _____________ affairs. territory A city-state is a powerful city that controls its local surrounding ________________. Nation background A nation is a group of people who share some sort of __________________, such as political culture, religion, or ethnicity. A nation may not possess a strong ______________ power, such as a government, that rules over the people. Nation-State country People often use the word ____________ when describing a nation-state. government Four characteristics define a nation-state: population, territory, _________________, sovereignty and __________________. Distribution of Power Scholars classify governments according to how power is distributed. central ❖ In a unitary government, the power of the state is concentrated in a single _____________ authority, dissolve which alone possesses sovereignty. The central government can give or _____________ powers from the local and regional governments within that state. ❖ A federal government divides the power of the state between the central government and several local ____________ governments. constitution ❖ In federal systems, a higher authority, usually a ___________________, stands above both the central and local governments and outlines the division of powers. The central government is still the sovereign entity in the state, but it must abide by the laws of the constitution. join ❖ In a confederal system, independent states _______ cede a small part of their power together and _______ to a central agency—the confederate government. The central government often retains some limited _____________ powers, such as dealing with foreign affairs and national economic issues.  Confederations have appeared twice in US history: after the Revolutionary War (1775 – 1783), and 70 years later when a group of southern states formed the Confederate States of America. Authoritarian Governments Throughout much of human history, nearly all governments were authoritarian. king pharaoh, A monarchy is a government ruled by a single person (such as a _______, life Monarchy or emperor) who usually stays in power for ________. god Monarchs have often claimed that their right to rule was given to them by a _____. A dictatorship is a government in which one person (a “supreme leader”) seizes complete control of the state and rules with _____________ power. Some dictators, such as Fidel Castro, who ruled Communist Cuba from 1961 to force 2008, come to power by __________, through a revolution or a coup d'état. Other dictators, such as Adolf Hitler of Nazi Germany, are elected democratically Dictatorship supreme and then give themselves _____________ power over the government. Totalitarianism represents a severe form of dictatorship, as exemplified in the Soviet Union. Under totalitarianism, the Soviet government controlled society nearly all aspects of ____________, including industry, the economy, religious practices, and free expression. Another type of authoritarian government is an oligarchy, from the Greek word for few "rule of the ______." elite An oligarchy occurs when a small group of _________ citizens Oligarchy rule a state. Sometimes the wealthy or high-ranking citizens (or noble families), aristocracy also known as the ________________, rule in an oligarchy. The word aristocracy best comes from the Greek root aristos, meaning "_________" or "most virtuous." religion A theocracy is a government in which the leaders of a _______________ control Theocracy the government, and the policies of the state closely adhere to the teachings _______________ of that religion. Authoritarianism Today power In most authoritarian regimes, citizens have few protections against the ____________ of the state. unlimited Authoritarian governments may claim near-________________ powers, and these governments can persecute citizens based on their personal opinions, religion, race, gender, or another quality. Democratic Governments Democracy is universally accepted as the ideal form of government. Direct Democracy participatory Direct, or _____________________, democracy is the most basic form of democracy. In direct democracy, citizens participate in the decision- voting making process by ______________ on laws and crafting state policies. This form of democracy is easiest to practice in small, geographically all compact communities where ______ citizens can gather in one place. Republic republic In a representative democracy, also known as a _______________, citizens elect officials to represent their legislature community. The elected representatives gather to form a __________________, which has the power and responsibility to make laws for the republic. whole Republics work well in part because the ___________ community does not have to gather to make a deadlock decision. But republics have a greater chance of political ______________, especially if the representatives become corrupt or lose touch with the citizens. Presidential Versus Parliamentary Democracy chief Most democracies have both a legislature and a _________ executive, who operates like a ship's captain, guiding the nation and the government. In some countries, including the United States, the English Other nations follow the ____________ model of elect people _________ a chief executive (known as the parliamentary democracy. In parliamentary President _________________) who is independent of the prime systems, the chief executive (called a __________ legislature and has powers separate from it. This minister or premier) is chosen by and is presidential system is known as a ___________________ responsible to the legislature. government. The prime minister is usually the leader of the registered In a presidential democracy, all _______________ majority _______________ party in the legislature (usually citizens can vote to select a president. parliament referred to as the ____________________).  Constitutional Government U.S. A constitution defines the ______________ of government as well as the rules that dictate decision making. The US Constitution specifically separates the functions of government judical into different branches: executive, legislative, and ____________. Each branch provides balances checks and ______________ to the others, thus preventing one branch from becoming too powerful. rights The US Constitution also names the ____________ of US citizens. These rights not only protected cannot be violated by the government but also must be _________________ by the limited government. Many Americans believe in a ______________ government that protects liberties individual ________________. Americans support a constitutional system because it limits government power while protecting individual freedoms. Summary What are some reasons why a democratic government may be preferred over an authoritarian government? Some reasons why a democratic government may be preferred over an authoritarian government is becasue individual citizens ahve more rights, in some democracy they get to choose who is possibly elected, there are reliable rules and laws that must be followed and protected, and in some decractic cases it implies more political stability.