List of countries by system of government

This is a list of sovereign states by constitutionally defined de jure system of government. This list does not measure degree of democracy, political corruption, or state capacity of governments.

Constitutional monarchies
These are systems in which the head of state is a constitutional monarch; the existence of their office and their ability to exercise their authority is established and restrained by constitutional law.

Systems in which a prime minister is the active head of the executive branch of government. In some cases, the prime minister is also leader of the legislature, while in other cases the executive branch is clearly separated from legislature (although the entire cabinet or individual ministers must step down in the case of a vote of no confidence). The head of state is a constitutional monarch who normally only exercises his or her powers with the consent of the government, the people and/or their representatives (except in emergencies, e.g. a constitutional crisis or a political deadlock).


 * 🇦🇩 Andorra
 * 🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda
 * 🇦🇺 Australia
 * 🇧🇸 Bahamas
 * 🇧🇪 Belgium
 * 🇧🇿 Belize
 * 🇰🇭 Cambodia
 * 🇨🇦 Canada
 * 🇨🇰 Cook Islands
 * 🇩🇰 Denmark
 * 🇬🇩 Grenada
 * 🇯🇲 Jamaica
 * 🇯🇵 Japan
 * 🇱🇸 Lesotho
 * 🇱🇺 Luxembourg
 * 🇲🇾 Malaysia
 * 🇳🇱 Netherlands
 * 🇳🇿 New Zealand
 * 🇳🇺 Niue
 * 🇳🇴 Norway
 * 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea
 * 🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis
 * 🇱🇨 Saint Lucia
 * 🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
 * 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands
 * 🇪🇸 Spain
 * 🇸🇪 Sweden
 * 🇹🇭 Thailand
 * 🇹🇻 Tuvalu
 * 🇬🇧 United Kingdom

Parliamentary republics with a ceremonial president
In a parliamentary republic, the head of government is selected or nominated by the legislature and is also accountable to it. The head of state is usually called a president and (in full parliamentary republics) is separate from the head of government, serving a largely apolitical, ceremonial role. In these systems, the head of government is usually called the prime minister, chancellor or premier. In mixed republican systems and directorial republican systems, the head of government also serves as head of state and is usually titled president.

In some full parliamentary systems, the head of state is directly elected by voters. Under other classification systems, however, these systems may instead be classed as semi-presidential systems as presidents are always attached to a political party and may have broad powers (despite their weak presidency). Full parliamentary republican systems with presidents being purely ceremonial and neutral with no broad powers, do usually not have a directly elected head of state and instead often use either an electoral college or a vote in the legislature to appoint the president.

Directly elected head of state

 * 🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina
 * 🇧🇬 Bulgaria
 * 🇭🇷 Croatia
 * 🇨🇿 Czech Republic
 * 🇫🇮 Finland
 * 🇮🇸 Iceland
 * 🇮🇪 Ireland
 * 🇲🇩 Moldova
 * 🇲🇪 Montenegro
 * North Macedonia
 * 🇵🇱 Poland
 * 🇷🇸 Serbia
 * 🇸🇬 Singapore
 * 🇸🇰 Slovakia
 * 🇸🇮 Slovenia

Indirectly elected head of state

 * 🇦🇱 Albania
 * 🇦🇲 Armenia
 * 🇧🇩 Bangladesh
 * 🇧🇧 Barbados
 * 🇩🇲 Dominica
 * 🇪🇪 Estonia
 * 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
 * 🇫🇯 Fiji
 * Georgia
 * 🇩🇪 Germany
 * 🇬🇷 Greece
 * 🇭🇺 Hungary
 * 🇮🇳 India
 * 🇮🇶 Iraq
 * 🇮🇱 Israel
 * 🇮🇹 Italy
 *  Kosovo
 * 🇱🇻 Latvia
 * 🇱🇧 Lebanon
 * 🇲🇹 Malta
 * 🇲🇺 Mauritius
 * 🇳🇵 Nepal
 * 🇵🇰 Pakistan
 * 🇼🇸 Samoa
 * 🇸🇲 San Marino
 * 🇸🇴 Somalia
 * 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
 * 🇻🇺 Vanuatu

Nations with limited recognition are in italics.

Parliamentary republics with an executive president
A combined head of state and head of government in the form of an executive president is either elected by the legislature or by the voters from among candidates nominated by the legislature (in the case of Kiribati), and they must maintain the confidence of the legislature to remain in office. In effect, "presidents" in this system function the same as prime ministers do in other parliamentary systems.


 * 🇧🇼 Botswana
 * 🇬🇾 Guyana
 * 🇰🇮 Kiribati
 * 🇲🇭 Marshall Islands
 * 🇳🇷 Nauru
 * 🇿🇦 South Africa

Presidential systems
In presidential systems a president is the head of government, and is elected and remains in office independently of the legislature. There is generally no prime minister, although if one exists, in most cases they serve purely at the discretion of the president.

Presidential republics without a prime minister

 * 🇦🇴 Angola
 * 🇧🇯 Benin
 * 🇧🇴 Bolivia
 * 🇧🇷 Brazil
 * 🇨🇱 Chile
 * 🇨🇴 Colombia
 * 🇰🇲 Comoros
 * 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
 * 🇨🇾 Cyprus
 * 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic
 * 🇪🇨 Ecuador
 * 🇸🇻 El Salvador
 * Gambia, The
 * 🇬🇭 Ghana
 * 🇬🇹 Guatemala
 * 🇭🇳 Honduras
 * 🇮🇩 Indonesia
 * 🇮🇷 Iran
 * 🇱🇷 Liberia
 * 🇲🇼 Malawi
 * 🇲🇻 Maldives
 * 🇲🇽 Mexico
 * 🇳🇮 Nicaragua
 * 🇳🇬 Nigeria
 * 🇵🇼 Palau
 * 🇵🇦 Panama
 * 🇵🇾 Paraguay
 * 🇵🇭 Philippines
 * 🇸🇨 Seychelles
 *  Somaliland
 * 🇹🇷 Turkey
 * 🇹🇲 Turkmenistan
 * 🇺🇸 United States
 * 🇺🇾 Uruguay
 * 🇻🇪 Venezuela
 * 🇿🇲 Zambia
 * 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

Nations with limited recognition are in italics.

Presidential republics with a prime minister
The following countries have presidential systems where a post of prime minister (official title may vary) exists alongside that of the president. The president is still both the head of state and government and the prime minister's roles are mostly to assist the president.


 *  Abkhazia
 * 🇦🇷 Argentina (see Chief of the Cabinet of Ministers)
 * 🇧🇾 Belarus
 * 🇧🇮 Burundi
 * 🇨🇲 Cameroon
 * 🇨🇫 Central African Republic
 * 🇩🇯 Djibouti
 * 🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea
 * Ivory Coast
 * 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan
 * 🇰🇪 Kenya (see Prime Cabinet Secretary)
 * 🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan
 * 🇷🇼 Rwanda
 * 🇸🇳 Senegal
 * 🇸🇱 Sierra Leone (see Chief minister)
 * 🇰🇷 South Korea
 * Syria
 * 🇹🇯 Tajikistan
 * 🇹🇿 Tanzania
 * 🇹🇬 Togo
 *  Transnistria
 * 🇺🇬 Uganda
 * 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan

Nations with limited recognition are in italics.

Semi-presidential republics
In a semi-presidential republic a president exists alongside a prime minister and a cabinet, with the latter two being responsible to the legislature. It differs from a parliamentary system in that it has an executive president independent from legislature; and from the presidential system in that the cabinet, although named by the president, is responsible to the legislature, which may force the cabinet to resign through a motion of no confidence.

Premier-presidential systems
In a premier-presidential system the prime minister and cabinet are exclusively accountable to the legislature.


 * 🇩🇿 Algeria
 * 🇨🇻 Cape Verde
 * Democratic Republic of the Congo
 * East Timor
 * 🇪🇬 Egypt
 * 🇫🇷 France
 * 🇱🇹 Lithuania
 * 🇲🇬 Madagascar
 * 🇲🇳 Mongolia
 *  Northern Cyprus
 * 🇵🇹 Portugal
 * 🇷🇴 Romania
 * São Tomé and Príncipe
 * 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
 * 🇺🇦 Ukraine

Nations with limited recognition are in italics.

President-parliamentary systems
In a president-parliamentary system the prime minister and cabinet are dually accountable to the president and the legislature.


 * 🇦🇹 Austria
 * 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan
 * 🇹🇩 Chad
 * Congo, Republic of the
 * 🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau
 * 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan
 * 🇲🇷 Mauritania
 * 🇲🇿 Mozambique
 * 🇳🇦 Namibia
 *  Palestine
 * 🇵🇪 Peru
 * 🇷🇺 Russia
 *  South Ossetia
 *  Republic of China (Taiwan)
 * 🇹🇳 Tunisia

Nations with limited recognition are in italics.

Single Head of State/Government
A combined head of state and head of government (usually titled president) is elected by the legislature but is not held accountable to it (as is their cabinet), thus acting more independently from the legislature. They may or may not also hold a seat in the legislature.


 * Federated States of Micronesia
 * 🇸🇷 Suriname

No single Head of State/Government
In a directorial republic, a council jointly exercises the powers and ceremonial roles of both the head of state and head of government. The council is elected by the parliament, but is not subject to parliamentary confidence during its fixed term. The so called president is a primus inter pares and has only representative tasks.


 * 🇨🇭 Switzerland

Semi-constitutional monarchies
The prime minister is the nation's active executive, but the monarch still has considerable political powers that can be used at their own discretion.


 * 🇧🇭 Bahrain
 * 🇧🇹 Bhutan
 * 🇯🇴 Jordan
 * 🇰🇼 Kuwait
 * 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein
 * 🇲🇨 Monaco
 * 🇲🇦 Morocco
 * 🇶🇦 Qatar
 * 🇹🇴 Tonga
 * 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates

Absolute monarchies
Specifically, monarchies in which the monarch's exercise of power is unconstrained by any substantive constitutional law. The monarch acts as both head of state and head of government.


 * Brunei
 * Eswatini
 * 🇴🇲 Oman
 * 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
 * 🇻🇦 Vatican City

One-party states
States in which political power is by law concentrated within one political party whose operations are largely fused with the government hierarchy (in contrast to states where a multi-party system formally exists, but this fusion is achieved anyway through election fraud or underdeveloped multi-party traditions).


 * 🇨🇳 China (Communist Party leads eight minor political parties) (list)
 * 🇨🇺 Cuba (Communist Party) (list)
 * 🇪🇷 Eritrea (People's Front for Democracy and Justice) (list)
 * 🇰🇵 North Korea (Workers' Party leads two minor parties) (list)
 * Laos (People's Revolutionary Party leads the Front for National Construction) (list)
 *  Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Polisario Front)
 * Vietnam (Communist Party leads the Fatherland Front) (list)

Nations with limited recognition are in italics.

Military juntas
A committee of the nation's military leaders controls the government for the duration of a state of emergency. Constitutional provisions for government are suspended in these states; constitutional forms of government are stated in parentheses.


 * 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso (semi-presidential republic)
 * 🇬🇦 Gabon (presidential republic)
 * 🇬🇳 Guinea (presidential republic)
 * 🇲🇱 Mali (presidential republic)
 * 🇲🇲 Myanmar (assembly-independent republic)
 * 🇳🇪 Niger (semi-presidential republic)
 * 🇸🇩 Sudan (presidential republic)

Provisional governments
States that have a system of government that is in transition or turmoil. These regimes lack a constitutional basis.


 * 🇦🇫 Afghanistan
 * 🇭🇹 Haiti
 * 🇱🇾 Libya
 * 🇸🇸 South Sudan
 * 🇾🇪 Yemen

Unitary states
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, 126 are governed as centralized unitary states, and an additional 40 are regionalized unitary states.

Centralized unitary states
States in which most power is exercised by the central government. What local authorities do exist have few powers.

Regionalized unitary states
States in which the central government has delegated some of its powers to regional authorities, but where constitutional authority ultimately remains entirely at a national level.


 * 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan (59 districts, and 1 autonomous republic)
 * 🇧🇴 Bolivia (9 departments)
 * 🇨🇱 Chile (16 regions)
 * (22 provinces, 5 autonomous regions, 4 province-level municipalities, 2 special administrative regions, and 1 claimed province)
 * 🇨🇴 Colombia (34 departments, and 1 capital district)
 * 🇨🇮 Côte d'Ivoire (14 autonomous districts)
 * 🇩🇰 Denmark (5 regions, and 2 self-governing territories)
 * 🇫🇮 Finland (19 regions, and Åland)
 * 🇫🇷 France (18 regions, of which 5 are overseas regions)
 * Georgia (9 regions, and 2 autonomous republics)
 * 🇬🇷 Greece (7 decentralized administrations, and 1 autonomous monastic state)
 * 🇮🇩 Indonesia (38 provinces, of which 9 have special status)
 * 🇮🇱 Israel (6 districts, Judea and Samaria Area)
 * 🇮🇹 Italy (20 regions, of which 5 are autonomous)
 * 🇯🇵 Japan (47 prefectures)
 * 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan (17 regions, 3 cities with region rights)
 * 🇰🇪 Kenya (47 counties)
 * Kingdom of the Netherlands (4 constituent countries)
 * 🇲🇷 Mauritania (15 regions)
 * 🇲🇩 Moldova (32 districts, 3 municipalities, and 2 autonomous territorial units)
 * 🇳🇿 New Zealand (16 regions, 1 self-administering territory, and 2 states in free association)
 * 🇳🇮 Nicaragua (15 departments, 2 autonomous regions)
 * 🇳🇴 Norway (10 counties, 1 autonomous city, 2 integral overseas areas, 3 dependencies)
 * 🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea (20 provinces, 1 autonomous region, and 1 national capital district)
 * 🇵🇪 Peru (25 regions, and 1 province)
 * 🇵🇭 Philippines (one autonomous region subdivided into 5 provinces and 113 other provinces and independent cities grouped into 17 other non-autonomous regions)
 * 🇵🇱 Poland (16 voivodeships)
 * 🇵🇹 Portugal (18 districts, and 2 autonomous regions)
 * São Tomé and Príncipe (6 districts, and Príncipe)
 * 🇷🇸 Serbia (29 districts, 2 autonomous provinces (one of which is a partially recognized de facto independent state), and 1 autonomous city)
 * 🇸🇧 Solomon Islands (9 provinces, and 1 capital territory)
 * 🇿🇦 South Africa (9 provinces)
 * 🇰🇷 South Korea (8 provinces, 6 special cities, and 1 autonomous province)
 * 🇪🇸 Spain (17 autonomous communities, 15 communities of common-regime, 1 community of chartered regime, 3 chartered provinces, 2 autonomous cities)
 * 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka (9 provinces)
 * 🇹🇯 Tajikistan (3 regions, 1 autonomous region, and 1 capital city)
 * 🇹🇿 Tanzania (21 regions, and Zanzibar)
 * 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago (9 regions, 1 autonomous island, 3 boroughs, and 2 cities)
 * 🇺🇦 Ukraine (24 oblasts, 2 cities with special status, and Crimea)
 * 🇬🇧 United Kingdom (4 countries – 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Scotland, Northern Ireland and 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Wales, of which 3 have devolved governments – Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales)
 * 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan (3 regions, 1 autonomous republic, and 1 independent city)

Federation
States in which the national government shares power with regional governments with which it has legal or constitutional parity. The central government may or may not be (in theory) a creation of the regional governments.


 * 🇦🇷 Argentina (23 provinces and one autonomous city)
 * 🇦🇺 Australia (six states and ten territories)
 * 🇦🇹 Austria (nine states)
 * 🇧🇪 Belgium (three regions and three linguistic communities)
 * 🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina (two entities and one district that is a condominium of the two entities)
 * 🇧🇷 Brazil (26 states and the Federal District)
 * 🇨🇦 Canada (ten provinces and three territories)
 * 🇰🇲 Comoros ( Anjouan, Grande Comore, and  Mohéli)
 * 🇪🇹 Ethiopia (10 regions and 2 chartered cities)
 * 🇩🇪 Germany (16 states)
 * 🇮🇳 India (28 states and 8 union territories)
 * 🇮🇶 Iraq (18 governorates and one region: Kurdistan)
 * 🇲🇾 Malaysia (13 states and three federal territories)
 * 🇲🇽 Mexico (32 states)
 * Federated States of Micronesia ( Chuuk, Kosrae,  Pohnpei and  Yap)
 * 🇳🇵 Nepal (seven provinces)
 * 🇳🇬 Nigeria (36 states and one federal territory: Federal Capital Territory)
 * 🇵🇰 Pakistan (4 provinces, 2 autonomous territories and 1 federal territory)
 * 🇷🇺 Russia (46 oblasts, 21 republics, nine krais, four autonomous okrugs, two federal cities, one autonomous oblast)
 * 🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis (Saint Kitts, Nevis)
 * 🇸🇴 Somalia (six federal member states)
 * 🇸🇸 South Sudan (ten states)
 * 🇸🇩 Sudan (17 states)
 * 🇨🇭 Switzerland (26 cantons)
 * 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates (seven emirates)
 * 🇺🇸 United States (50 states, one incorporated territory, and one federal district: District of Columbia)
 * 🇻🇪 Venezuela (23 states, one capital district, and the Federal Dependencies of Venezuela)

European Union
The exact political character of the European Union is debated, some arguing that it is sui generis (unique), but others arguing that it has features of a federation or a confederation. It has elements of intergovernmentalism, with the European Council acting as its collective "president", and also elements of supranationalism, with the European Commission acting as its executive and bureaucracy.