Classification and Forms of Government

SPRING 2020

POL 101: SESSION 4

10 FEBRUARY 2020
 Forms of Government
A form of government or form of state governance, refers to
the set of political institutions by which a government of a state
is organized.

Synonyms for forms of government

Regime, administration, authority, governance,
jurisdiction, executive, cabinet etc.

Government normally consists of legislators, administrators and

arbitrators.
 Aristotle’s Ancient Classification of Government
Who Legitimate Forms Corrupt Forms
Governs Rule in the interest of all Rule in the interest of
selves
One Monarchy Tyranny
A few Aristocracy Oligarchy
Many Polity Democracy

Aristotle considered Aristocracy as the best

and

Polity as the most practical form of government

In Ancient Greek, the word aristocracy means the
rule of the best, but it has come to be linked with
rule by royal families. Aristocracy is a kind
of government that puts power in the hands of a
small, privileged ruling class.

The noun polity refers to a political group of

any size or shape. It can be a government, a
state, a country, or even a social group. The
Greek word politeia means "citizenship" or
"government."
 Stephen Leacock’s Modern Classification of Government
On the basis of location of Democracy Dictatorship
sovereign power

On the basis of the The Republic Constitutional

method of acquiring Monarchy
power by the head of the
state
On the basis of the Presidential form of Parliamentary form
relation between the Government of Government
Executive and the
Legislative
On the basis of distribution Federal Unitary Government
of power between the Government
centre and the province
Democracy
According to the former president of USA, Abraham Lincoln,
"Democracy is a government of the people, by the people
and for the people.”

It means when people are the sources of all power and where
the opinion of the people are valued most it is called
Democracy.
 Elements of Democracy

• Guarantee of basic Human Rights to every individual

• Separation of Powers between the institutions of the
state i.e., Executive, Legislative and Judiciary
• Freedom of opinion, speech, press and mass media
• Religious liberty
• General and equal right to vote
• Good Governance i.e., focus on public interest and
absence of corruption
Democracy is of two types. (1) Direct or pure
democracy. (2) Indirect or representative
democracy.
In direct democracy all eligible citizens have direct
participation in the decision making of the government.
The more common form of democracy
is representative democracy where citizens exercise
power through elected representatives.
 Why Democracies Fail?
1. Poverty
2. Major inequality
3. No middle class
4. Low education levels
5. Oil
6. Tribalism
7. Little civil society
8. Had been a colony
9. No earlier democratic experience
10. No democratic countries nearby
Dictatorship
In this system, the sovereign power of the state is vested in the hands of
one person or a group of people. The ideal of dictatorship is one country,
one nation and one leader. In dictatorial administration there is one political
party and the ruler is not accountable to anybody. Hitler of Germany and his
Nazi Party is an example.

The ruler usually does not call himself a dictator rather he considers himself
as a leader. The country is usually called a democratic republic but is not in
reality. Like elections are held in North Korea but the contesting candidate is
usually one; such as Kim Jong-un.

In present day world, Cuba, Sudan, Myanmar have Military

Dictatorships. Both Pakistan and Bangladesh experienced military
dictators’ rule.
Constitutional Monarchy
It is a democratic system of administration where
the Head of the state gets power through heredity
and remains the symbolic head only.

In this system the real power remains in the hands

of the elected representatives. Here the monarch
reigns but does not rule. Example is Great Britain.
 Types of Monarchy
1. Absolute monarchy: When the Monarch completes
authority over all the affairs of his Kingdom. He has the
power to enforce any type of law. e.g. Saudi Arabia, UAE,
Oman, Brunei.

2. Constitutional Monarchy: When a monarch acts as

head of the state within the parameters of a constitution.

In most cases, Constitutional Monarchy is practiced in

Parliamentary system in which real authority rests with
Prime Minister and Monarch is just a symbolic head.
Examples, Great Britain, Denmark.
Republic
Republic is an administrative system where the head
of the government gets power through election of the
people. The head exercises power according to
the rule of law. Bangladesh is an example of
Republic.
Parliamentary form of Govt
In this system the administration is conducted by the council of
ministers and these ministers remain responsible for their activities to
the legislature. This is also called the cabinet form of government.

Here the head of the council of ministers is the Prime Minister.

Examples are Great Britain, India and Canada.

The Prime Minister and the ministers are collectively responsible to the
legislature for their policies and activities. The council of ministers will
remain in power till the Legislature support them. If the majority of the
members of the Legislature brings the vote of no confidence against the
ministers they resign.
Presidential form of government
Presidential form of government is that form of government in which
the administration is not accountable to the Legislature. President is
the real Executive. The president is elected by direct votes of the
people. Presidential form of government is prevalent in the USA . In
this system all the powers are vested in the hands of the president.
The president is not a member of the Legislature. He is elected by the
people for a fixed term.

The Legislature cannot pass a vote of no-confidence against him. He

can only be removed by impeachment. The president appoints the
ministers and they are responsible to him. He can dismiss any minister
at any time.
Unitary government
A unitary government is a government in which all the
powers of the state are concentrated in the hands of the
Central Government sanctioned by the constitution. The
Local Governments derive their powers from the Central
Government.
Bangladesh is an example of unitary government. For the
convenience of administration of unitary government the
state is divided into some parts(Division, District, Upazilla,
City Corporation, Municipality, Union Council). In these
parts local governments are formed. To squeeze or
expand the power of the government depends on the will
of the central government.
Federal government
In the system of administration where the constitution distributes the
powers between the Central Government and the Provincial
Government, it is called the Federal Government. This system is
available in India and in the USA. In the system there are two types of
government: the central government and the state government.

The constitution distributes power between the Central and the State
Government. The subjects concerning the total interest of the states
remain under the Central Government and the subjects concerning the
local interest remain in the State or Provincial Government. In the
matters of regional administration the State Government enjoys self-
government. In this system of administration the constitution is written
and it is rigid.
Among other forms of government, oligarchy,
totalitarianism, authoritarianism and theocracy
are significant.
Oligarchy is a form of government in which all power resides
with a few people or in a dominant class or group within the
society. These groups of people may be distinguished by
royalty, wealth, education or military control. One family may
have power for several years, and then the power may be
shifted to another group of people or another family based on
their military ties or wealth. The most well-known example is
the former Soviet Union. Other examples of oligarchy
governments are found in the countries of China, North
Korea, and Venezuela.
Totalitarian means relating to a
government where the ruler or ruling
group has complete control. An
example of totalitarian used as an
adjective is in the phrase
"totalitarian regime" which means a
rule where the ruler has total
authority over everyone. Examples,
State of Eritrea and North Korea.
A totalitarian system of government in which a single
authoritarian party controls state-owned means of production.

 Freedom disappears.

 The old autocratic rulers kept their subjects quiet, but the
totalitarian state insists on mass enthusiasm.

In most cases, a communist state is based on the ideology of

communism as taught by Marx/Lenin. A planned economy is
often part of the governing class and in many cases resources
are taken and then redistributed to others.
6 traits of Totalitarian government
• An all-encompassing ideology
• A single party
• Organized terror
• Monopoly of communications
• Monopoly of weapons
• Controlled economy
Authoritarianism
Non-democratic government but not necessarily
totalitarian.
Authoritarian regimes are governed by a small group;
usually a dictator or army.
They do not attempt to control everything. Many
economic, social, religious, cultural and familial matters
are left up to individuals.
Rigged elections confirm the rule of the dominant party,
legislatures rubber stamp the dictator’s laws and puppet
prime minister and cabinet carry them out.
 Types of Authoritarianism
Examples
Military Mauritania, Niger
Personalistic Uzbekistan, Venezuela
Traditional Monarchy Saudi Arabia, Kuwait
Dominant Party Russia, Zimbabwe
Single Party China, Cuba
Theocracy is a form of government in which a country is ruled by religious
leaders.

A theocratic ruler legitimizes his rule by claiming it as his divine right.

Theocratic governments seek guidance from higher powers to cover all
aspects of life, including law, punishment, education and marriage.
Theocratic government is highly influenced from religion and laws are often
made in the light of their faith.

A theocratic ruler is a kind of dictator.

Examples: Iran has been a theocracy since the religious Islamic Revolution in
1979, when the people of Iran established a country based on Islamic law.

The Vatican City is also a theocracy. It is headed by the Pope, head of the
Roman Catholic Church, administered by clergy and governed by religious
laws.
Required Reading

 Roskin, M. G., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2014). Political
Science: An Introduction (14th Edition). Pearson. (Chapter 3 & 5)

https://wikieducator.org/Forms_of_Government

https://www.slideshare.net/ShahUsmanRiwayat/five-major-forms-of-
governments-in-todays-world
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_Bangladesh#Executive_bran
ch