This article lists forms of government and political systems, which are not mutually exclusive, and often have much in common. According to Yale professor Juan José Linz there are three main types of political systems today: democracies, totalitarian regimes and, sitting between these two, authoritarian regimes with hybrid regimes. Another modern classification system includes monarchies as a standalone entity or as a hybrid system of the main three. Scholars generally refer to a dictatorship as either a form of government which is characterized by a leader who holds absolute or near-absolute political power.
The ancient Greek philosopher Plato discusses in the Republic five types of regimes: aristocracy, timocracy, oligarchy, democracy, and tyranny. The question raised by Plato in the Republic: What kind of state is best? Generational changes informed by new political and cultural beliefs, technological progress, values and morality over millenniums have resulted in considerable shifts in the belief about the origination of political authority, who may participate in matters of state, how people might participate, the determination of what is just, and so forth.
Basic forms of governments
+ Systems of government can be divided into two main categories, democratic and non-democratic Democratic Direct Democracy, Representative Democracy (Republic Government, Parliamentary Government), Constitutional monarchy Non-Democratic Authoritarian, Totalitarian, Oligarchy, Technocracy, Theocracy, Dictatorship, Absolute monarchy Other Types Colonialist, Aristocratic Index of Forms of Government.
Forms of government by regional control +TermDefinitionExamplesConfederationA confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign states, united for purposes of common action often in relation to other states. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states are usually established for dealing with critical issues, such as defense, foreign relations, internal trade or currency, with the general government being required to provide support for all its members. Confederation represents a main form of inter-governmental-ism, this being defined as "any form of interaction between states which takes place on the basis of sovereign independence or government." Confederation is almost as a federation with the federal government being as a combination or alliance of all the states. Haudenosaunee Confederacy
United States (1781–1789) The Old Swiss Confederacy (c. 1300–1798)
Serbia and Montenegro (2003–2006) Senegambia Confederation (1982–1989)FederationA federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions under a central (federal) government. In a federation, the self-governing status of the component states, as well as the division of power between them and the central government, is typically constitutionally entrenched and may not be altered by a unilateral decision of either party, the states or the federal political body. Alternatively, federation is a form of government in which sovereign power is formally divided between a central authority and a number of constituent regions so that each region retains some degree of control over its internal affairs. Ethiopia Germany Mexico Malaysia Nigeria United States IndiaUnitary stateA unitary state is a state governed as a single power in which the central government is ultimately supreme and any administrative divisions (sub-national units) exercise only the powers that the central government chooses to delegate. The majority of states in the world have a unitary system of government. Of the 193 UN member states, 165 are governed as unitary states.
Forms of government by power source +TermDescriptionExamplesAutocracyAutocracy is a system of government in which supreme power (social and political) is concentrated in the hands of one person or polity, whose decisions are subject to neither external legal restraints nor regularized mechanisms of popular control (except perhaps for the implicit threat of a coup d'état or mass insurrection). Absolute monarchies (such as Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Brunei and Eswatini) and dictatorships are the main modern-day forms of autocracy. In family dictatorships, political power is passed down within one family because of the overwhelming authority of the leader. For example, in Haiti a form of hereditary dictatorship was founded by François Duvalier (Papa Doc); In 1971, Jean-Claude Duvalier (Baby Doc) became Haiti's next dictator for life after his father's death who ruled until he was overthrown in early 1986. Most monarchies prior to the 18th century
Haiti (de facto, during Duvalier dynasty)
(1933–1945) (1971–1997)
Note: Most are considered totalitarian regimes with the dictator or "monarch" being able to choose anyone, though this has not happened yet in these statesOligarchyOligarchy, meaning "rule of the few", is a form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people might be distinguished by nobility, wealth, family ties, education or corporate, religious or military control. Such states are often controlled by families who typically pass their influence from one generation to the next, but inheritance is not a necessary condition for the application of this term. Russia South Africa (1948–1994) (1894–1930)DemocracyDemocracy, meaning "rule of the people", is a system of government in which the citizens exercise power directly or elect representatives from among themselves to form a governing body, such as a parliament. Democracy is sometimes referred to as "rule of the majority". Democracy is a system of processing conflicts in which outcomes depend on what participants do, but no single force controls what occurs and its outcomes. This does include citizens being able to vote for different laws and leaders.AnarchySometimes said to be non-governance; it is a structure which strives for non-hierarchical, voluntary associations among agents, emphasizing autonomy and decentralization, often employing direct democracy or consensus democracy.
Systems resembling anarchism can be a natural, temporary result of civil war in a country, when an established state has been destroyed and the region is in a transitional period without definitive leadership. It has also been proposed as a historical state of human society, especially before the concentration of power afforded by agriculture. It has been presented as a viable long-term choice by individuals known as anarchists who oppose the state and other forms of coercive hierarchies. These systems are often highly organized, and include institutional or cultural systems to prevent the concentration of power. Anarchism typically advocates for social organization in non-hierarchical, voluntary associations where people voluntarily help each other. There are a variety of forms of anarchy that attempt to discourage the use of coercion, violence, force and authority, while still producing a productive and desirable society. Strandzha Commune (1903) Morelos Commune (1913–1917) Makhnovshchina (1918–1921) Korean People's Association in Manchuria (1929–1931) Regional Defence Council of Aragon (1936–1937) Revolutionary Catalonia (1936–1939) Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities (1994–2023)
Types of democracy
+TermDescriptionExamples Demarchy Government in which the state is governed by randomly selected decision from a broadly inclusive pool of eligible citizens. These groups, sometimes termed "policy juries", "citizens' juries", or "consensus conferences", deliberately make decisions about public policies in much the same way that juries decide criminal cases. Demarchy, in theory, could overcome some of the functional problems of conventional representative democracy, which is widely subject to manipulation by special interests and a division between professional policymakers (politicians and lobbyists) vs. a largely passive, uninvolved and often uninformed electorate. According to Australian philosopher John Burnheim, random selection of policymakers would make it easier for everyday citizens to meaningfully participate, and harder for special interests to corrupt the process.
More generally, random selection of decision makers from a larger group is known as sortition (from the Latin base for lottery). The Athenian democracy made much use of sortition, with nearly all government offices filled by lottery (of full citizens) rather than by election. Candidates were almost always male, Greek, educated citizens holding a minimum of wealth and status. Ancient Athens Northern Italy and Venice (12th–18th century) Census democracy It is the suffrage in which the right to vote is restricted to only a part of the population, being in many cases wealthy class. This was the case in almost all existing democracies of the 18th and 19th centuries, although in the latter the right to vote was given to the working class and the lower middle class in countries like Great Britain, later in the 20th century the universal suffrage with the advent of voting rights for all people of the age of majority. Pre-JFK United States Restoration Spain First French Empire Direct democracy Government in which the people represent themselves and vote directly for new laws and public policy. (semi-direct) Ancient Athens Electocracy A form of representative democracy where citizens are able to vote for their government but cannot participate directly in governmental decision making. The government has almost absolute power. (before 2006 coup d'état)ErgatocracyRule by the proletariat, the workers, or the working class. Examples of ergatocracy include communist revolutionaries and rebels who control most of society and establish an alternative economy for people and workers. See Dictatorship of the proletariat. Herrenvolk democracy A form of government in which only a specific ethnic group participates in government, while other ethnic groups are disenfranchised. Though elections may be free, voting suffrage is restricted based on race, with governance reflecting the interests of the politically dominant racial group. Confederate States of America Republic of South Africa (during Apartheid)