1. Unit 1
Types of Government

2. Bellringer 2/2
How is our government organized and what type of government do we have?

3. Structures of Government
Governments can vary in how they are structured with multiple levels of governance.
Unitary: power is centralized in the national government.
Federal (2): power is divided between national and regional government.
Federal government trumps local governments, but local governments have sovereignty in some policy areas.
Confederation: power resides in the regions, which are independent states.

4. Types of Government
Governments differ in the way their leaders are chosen and who holds power.
Each country’s government has been shaped by the traditional beliefs of its people and by their history.

5. Autocracy Autocracy: where one person holds all the power.
Absolute monarchy: single rule exercises supreme power based on heredity or divine right.
Constitutional Monarch: ruler has limited authority and must act within the bounds of a constitution.
Dictatorship: single person or group exercises supreme power based on its control of the military and police
Modern dictators established totalitarian systems

6. Oligarchy
Oligarchy (3): form of government in which all power is concentrated in a small group of people.
People can be distinguished by royalty, wealth, family ties, education, religious, or military control.

7. Theocracy
Theocracy: ruled by one or more religious leaders who claim to rule on behalf of God or the gods worshiped in their country.
Rulers may be elected, but rulers respond to divine guidance and not wishes of the people

8. Democracy Democracy (4): supreme power is vested in the people.
Direct democracy: form of government in which decisions are made directly by citizens meeting together in an assembly or voting by ballot
Representative democracy: form of government in which people elect representatives to govern them.

9. Democracy
Republic (5): a form of government in which people elect representatives to govern them.
The American Republic is synonymous with representative democracy.
How is it democratic?
How is it representative?
The purpose of a republic is to protect the individual’s rights.

11. Types of Government
Mentimeter

12. American Government
The government of the US has the purpose of protecting and promoting our basic values for everyone.
Equality
Liberty
Justice
A nation may agree on values and principles philosophically, but disagree on application of those principles.

13. Reflection On the back of your chart, illustrate each word.
You will illustrate each word to represent what it means.
Monarch
Dictatorship
Theocracy
Oligarchy
Democracy
Republic