Government Vocabulary Flashcards
The central government has all power.
unitary government
Power is divided between central government and smaller political units.
federal governement
Loose alliance; political units control their own laws; central government makes decisions only on issues that affect the entire group.
confederation government
A small group controls power (rich and powerful people) they are the only citizens who participate.
oligarchy
One leader controls power; citizens do not participate.
autocracy
People have full and equal rights to participate.
democracy
What are the two forms of democracy?
presidential and parliamentary
The people vote for the legislature and for the president.
presidential democracy
The people vote for the legislature (parliament) and the legislature votes for the prime minister.
parliamentary democracy
leaders who make rules and maintain order
government
A person born or given privileges of a country.
citizen
Government that is in your area.
local
government that is in your country.
national
power to do things
authority
the rules that the government follows and states the rights of people.
constitution
Who has all the power in a unitary government?
the central government.
A group that comes together to support each other and to work on common problems. Usually formed by a treaty. Participants are voluntary, equal members that must meet with each other before taking action on an issue.
confederation
Which country in Europe has a federal government?
Germany
What is one reason the British Commonwealth is called a confederation?
Because it replaced central rule when the British Empire broke up. When the British Empire lost governing power over its colonies, the Commonwealth of Nations was formed and membership is voluntary and the countries work together on common problems.
A central government has all the power; has a constitution that outlines duties and powers of the central government and also the people; can give powers to lower levels; this power can change or be taken back at any time.
Unitary government
This system has a constitution. The constitution explains the rights, responsibilities, and duties of the central government and the states. Power is divided between the central government and the lower levels. The central government cannot take power back away from the states, it cannot choose the state’s leaders and it cannot do away with the lower levels of government.
federal government
Which country has a unitary government?
France
