Types of Governments
Democracy: In a democracy the people elect leaders to represent them and their country.
Any citizen can run for office and be elected. The people choose their leaders and
representatives by voting. The elected leaders must obey the same laws as everyone else, and
their power is limited.
Dictatorship: A dictator is a person who rules over a country by force. In a dictatorship the
people have no vote in selecting a leader. A dictator has unlimited power and can do whatever
they want to anyone. Dictators are usually ruthless and will not hesitate to have someone
executed,or thrown into prison. The citizens have very little control in their lives and how their
country is run. North Korea is a country with a dictator.
Monarchy:
A monarchy is a type of government that has a king and a Queen. There are two
types of monarchies.
1. An Absolute Monarchy is a king or queen with unlimited power. A king in an absolute
monarchy is almost as bad as a dictator. The king or queen can do whatever they want and the
people have no say in how their country is run. When a king dies, his son or daughter takes over.
2. The other type of monarchy is a Constitutional Monarchy. In a constitutional monarchy
the king or queen has no power. These countries usually had a King or queen in their past
history. Constitutional Monarchies usually have a parliament, or separate government, that runs
the country like a democracy. Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy. Their power is
limited. The King or Queen cannot make laws and must follow the constitution.
Theocracy: In a theocracy the country is ruled by religion. The leaders are usually religious
leaders, and the laws are based on their religion. The people have no say in how the country is
run. Most theocracy leaders have unlimited rule. Many of the laws are based on their holy
book. Many Middle East countries are theocracies, and their laws are based on religion.
Totalitarian: (Toe-tal-li-ter-e-an) In a government the people are ruled by a group of
leaders with unlimited power. Totalitarian governments are very similar to a dictatorship.
These leaders are there for life, and the people have no say in how their country is run.
Republic: The United States is a republic. Very similar to a democracy, a republic has leaders
that are elected by the citizens when voting. A republic has a president who is elected by the
people. The president has limited power and must obey the law like everyone else.
Oligarchy (Ah-Lee-gar-key): An oligarchy is a country ruled by a few people. These rulers
are often very wealthy, or are in charge of a military. The people ruled by an oligarchy have
very few or no rights. An oligarchy government has unlimited power over its people.
Communism: The people of a country ruled by a communist government have few or no rights.
The communist government owns all the property and all of the industries & businesses. People
who live under communism cannot start their own business or own property. The citizens live in
government housing on government land, and will work for government owned factories. People
are paid very little and will never get rich from hard work. Communist leaders have unlimited
power and the people have no vote or choice in their leaders. China is a communist country.
Which governments have unlimited power?
Which governments have limited power?
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