Parliamentary Republic: examples of countries. Parliamentary Republics: List

There are several basic forms of government in the modern world that have been formed historically. In this article we will talk about a political system, like a parliamentary republic. Examples of countries you can also find in this article.

What it is?

The parliamentary republic (examples of countries of this form of government you will find below) is a kind of state structure in which all the full power belongs to a special legislative body - the parliament. In different countries it is called differently: the Bundestag in Germany, the Landtag in Austria, the Seim in Poland, and so on.

The form of government "parliamentary republic" differs primarily in the fact that it is the parliament that forms the government, which is fully accountable to it, and also elects the president of the country (in most cases). How does all this happen in practice? After the parliamentary popular elections, the winning parties create a coalition majority, on the basis of which a new government is formed. At the same time, each party receives the number of "portfolios" in accordance with its weight in this coalition. So, with several proposals, one can describe the functioning of such an education as a parliamentary republic.

Examples of countries - "pure" parliamentary republics - can be cited as follows: Germany, Austria, Ireland, India (these are the most classic examples). Since 1976, Portugal has been added to their number, and since 1990 - the African state of Cape Verde.

Do not confuse such concepts as the parliamentary monarchy and the parliamentary republic, although they are in many respects similar. The main similarity is that both here and there the parliament acts as the dominant authority, and the president (or the monarch) performs only representative functions, that is, it is only a certain symbol of the country. But the main difference between these forms of government is that in the parliamentary republic the president is every time re-elected by parliament, and in the monarchy this post is inherited.

Republic: presidential, parliamentary, mixed

To date, there are three types of republics. Depending on the size and breadth of powers of the head of state - the president - the republics are presidential and parliamentary. Classic example of the presidential republic is always called the US, the traditional examples of the parliamentary republic - Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic and others.

There is also a third type of republic - the so-called mixed one. In such states, both branches of power are endowed with approximately equal powers and control one another. The most striking examples of such countries are France, Romania.

Main characteristics of the parliamentary republic

All states of the parliamentary republic have similar features, which should be listed:

• The executive power entirely belongs to the head of the government, it can be the prime minister or the chancellor;
• The president is elected not by the people, but by the parliament (or special collegium);
• The head of government is appointed by the president, although the candidate is proposed from among the leaders of the coalition formed by the majority;
• All responsibility for the actions of the government is borne by its leader;
• All acts of the president are valid only if they are signed by the prime minister or the relevant minister.

Parliamentary Republics: List of countries

The prevalence in the world of this form of government is quite large. To date, there are about thirty parliamentary republics, while it should be noted that there is no single figure on this issue. The fact is that some countries are very difficult to attribute to this or that type. Examples of the parliamentary republic are given below (they are distributed by parts of the world):

• In Europe - Austria, Albania, Greece, Bulgaria, Italy, Estonia, Ireland, Iceland, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Malta, Lithuania, Latvia, Serbia, Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Finland, Slovenia and Slovakia;
• In Asia - Turkey, Israel, Nepal, Singapore, India, Bangladesh, Iraq;
• In Africa - Ethiopia;
• In America - Dominica;
• In Oceania - Vanuatu.

As we see, the parliamentary republics, which list includes more than 30 countries, prevail in the European region. Another feature that immediately catches your eye is that most of the countries listed above (especially Europe) are economically developed successful states with a high level of development of democracy.

If you take into account the rating of the world's countries by the level of democracy (organization of the Economist Intelligence Unit), it can be seen that of the 25 states that have the highest status of "full democracy", 21 countries are parliamentary republics and monarchies. Also these countries are leaders in the IMF rating on GDP per capita of the country. Thus, we can safely say that the most effective and successful form of government (at this time) are the parliamentary republics.

The list of countries listed above can also be represented in the form of the following map, on which the parliamentary republics are marked in orange:

"Pros and cons of this form of government

The main advantages of this political system include the following:

• The parliamentary system ensures the unity of the legislative and executive branches of government;
• All initiatives of the government, as a rule, receive full support of the parliament, which ensures the stable functioning of the whole system of power;
• This management system fully allows you to observe the principle of popular representation in power.

There are, however, in the parliamentary republics also their shortcomings, which partly come out of the merits of this political system. First of all, this is the instability of coalition unions, which often leads to political crises (vivid examples - Ukraine or Italy). Also very often the coalition government has to abandon the actions useful for the country in order to adhere to the ideological line of the coalition agreement.

Another significant drawback of the parliamentary republics is the danger of usurpation of power in the state by the government, when the parliament, in fact, becomes an ordinary "stamping machine" for laws.

Next, consider the features of the political structure of the most popular on the planet parliamentary republics: Austria, Germany, India and Poland.

Federal Republic of Austria

The Austrian Parliament is called the "Landtag," and deputies are elected to it for a four-year term. The central parliament of the country - Federal Fees of Austria - consists of two chambers: the National Council (183 deputies) and the Bundesrat (62 deputies). In addition, its Landtag is in each of the nine federal states of Austria.

In Austria, only about 700 parties are registered, but at the moment there are only five of them in the Austrian parliament.

Federal Republic of Germany

The German parliament is also elected for four years. It consists of two chambers: the Bundestag, which includes 622 deputies, and the Bundesrat (69 deputies). The deputies of the Bundesrat are representatives of all 16 lands of the country. Each of the federal states has from 3 to 6 representatives in the state parliament (depending on the size of a particular land).

The German parliament elects a federal chancellor to head the executive branch and, in fact, is the main person in the state. Since 2005, this position in Germany is occupied by Angela Merkel - the first woman in the position of the Federal Chancellor in the history of the country.

Republic of Poland

The Polish parliament is called the Saeima, it is also bicameral. The Parliament of Poland consists of two parts: the Sejm proper, which consists of 460 deputies, and also the Senate, consisting of 100 deputies. The Seimas are elected according to the proportional system, according to the method of D'Hondt. At the same time, only those candidates who have won at least 5% of the vote in the national vote can vote for the deputy seat in the Seimas (except for representatives of ethnic minority parties).

Republic of India

India is also a parliamentary republic in which all the full power belongs to the parliament and the government that it is forming. The Indian Parliament includes the People's Chamber and the Council of the States, the body that expresses the interests of individual states.

Members of the People's Chamber (Lok Sabha) are elected by popular vote. The total (the maximum under the Constitution of India) the number of members of the People's Chamber - 552 people. The term of office of one convocation of the Chamber is 5 years. However, the Lok Sabha can be dissolved early by the president of the country, and in certain situations the Indian legislation also provides for the extension of the Chamber's work for one year. The head of the People's Chamber of India is the speaker, who after his election to this position is obliged to withdraw from his party.

The Council of States (Rajya Sabha) is formed by indirect elections and includes 245 deputies. Every two years the composition of Rajya Sabha is renewed by a third.

Finally...

Now you have an idea of what a parliamentary republic is. Examples of countries are also given in this information article: Austria, Germany, Italy, Poland, India, Singapore, the Czech Republic and other countries (total - about 30 countries). In conclusion, we can say that this political system of government has its own advantages and disadvantages. However, to date the parliamentary republic is the most optimal and effective form of government in the world.