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Government
6th grade social studies - government
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| oligarchy | A government ruled by a few powerful people; citizens have a medium amount of participation |
| autocracy | the ruler has absolute, or total, power to do whatever he or she wishes; citizens have a low amount of participation |
| democracy | citizens have the power in choosing their leaders; citizens have a high amount of participation |
| Parliamentary Democracy | government in which voters elect representatives to a lawmaking body which chooses a prime minister to head the government |
| Presidential Democracy | A form of government in which the citizens directly elect a president |
| government | the system by which a country is organized |
| legislative branch | its main purpose is to create laws for the country |
| executive branch | main purpose is to enforce, or carry-out, the laws passed by the legislative branch |
| judicial branch | in charge of the courts in a country that settle disputes among citizens and between citizens and the government |
| citizen participation | how much power the citizens have in terms of rights and selecting their leaders |
| dictatorship | one person controls the entire country |
| absolute monarchy | the sovereign, such as the king or queen, has all of the power |
| head of government | the person in charge of the day-to-day business of running a country |
| head of state | a leader, usually in a parliamentary democracy, who does not have very much power |
| constitutional monarchy | a king or queen, only has whatever powers that are stated in the constitution |
| bicameral | Two houses of legislature |
| unicameral | One-house legislature |
| political party | an organization which represents a specific political agenda and socioeconomic position within a given nation |
| Prime Minister | the title often given to the head of government in a parliamentary democracy |
| President | the title often given to the head of government (and state) in a presidential democracy |