federal state
Constituent governmental unit
A federal state is a country where power is divided between a central government and regional units—states, provinces, or cantons—each with their own authority over certain matters.
The United States, Germany, and Australia are federal states; France and Japan are not.
The regional governments in a federal state have constitutional protections against being abolished or overruled by the central authority.
Canada became a federal state to accommodate its diverse provinces.
Inherent physical or structural makeup
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
- autonomyIndependent decision-making capacity
- jurisdictionLegal authority's scope
- republicState with elected leaders
commonwealth · canton · province · division · territory · union · decentralization · subsidiarity
Lawmaking governmental branch
- senateLegislative governing body
- parliamentNational legislative assembly
- executiveSenior organizational leader
- judiciaryLaw-interpreting government branch
governor · cabinet · administration · bureaucracy · capitol · democracy · bicameral · representative
constitution
Inherent physical or structural makeup
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
- autonomyIndependent decision-making capacity
- jurisdictionLegal authority's scope
republic · commonwealth · canton · province · division · territory · union · decentralization · subsidiarity · powers
legislature
Lawmaking governmental branch
- senateLegislative governing body
- parliamentNational legislative assembly
- executiveSenior organizational leader
judiciary · governor · cabinet · administration · bureaucracy · capitol · democracy · bicameral · representative · minister
election
Organized public voting
bill · law · amendment · ballot · campaign · coalition · referendum · veto · majority · opposition
Germany
Central European nation
- SwitzerlandAlpine republic, perpetually neutral
- AustriaCentral European alpine republic
- AustraliaSouthern Hemisphere continent-country
India · Brazil · Mexico · Nigeria · Malaysia · United States · Canada · Belgium · Russia · Argentina
- governmentsdemocracy, monarchy, autocracy, oligarchy, republic
- jurisdictionscounty, city, province, counties, municipalities
- territoriesprovince, region, country, colony, dominion
- German geographyBavaria, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg
- political entitiesnation, country, kingdom, republic, dominion
- subdivisionscounty, province, region, district, provinces
federal statecentralized government
Authority held by one body
absolute monarchy · autocracy · sovereign nations · empire · city-state
state, federal, federalism, federation, statesman, confederate, confederation, federate, confederacy