In this article you will learn about Presidential Government in Political Science.
Presidential Government
The executive is termed as Presidential Executive when there is a separation of powers between the legislature and the executive and the latter is not responsible before the former. This system of government is called the Presidential System. In such a system, the head of the state (President) is also the head of government and he is his own prime minister. He wields real executive powers during the fixed and definite tenure. It is because of this fact i.e. the very strong position of the President (Head of the State and Head of Government) that it is called the Presidential form of government. The Cabinet has vast executive and legislative powers. Some Political Scientists even advocate the view that there is a dictatorship of cabinet in a Parliamentary form of Government.
The president is responsible for a wide range of duties and responsibilities, including:
- Signing or vetoing legislation passed by the legislative branch
- Making appointments to key government positions, such as judges or cabinet members
- Representing the country in international relations
- Delivering a State of the Union address to Congress
- Having the power to declare a state of emergency
- Acting as commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
Presidential Model of Relationship Between the Legislature and Executive
The features of the Presidential model of relationship between legislature and executive are almost entirely different from the one which characterises the parliamentary model. In this model, the legislature and executive have distinct and separate entities. The principle of separation of powers governs their relationship.
Incompatibility of Membership of the Executive and Legislature
Neither any member of the legislature can become a member (minister) of the executive nor any member of the latter can participate in the working of the former. A legislator, if at all he is to be a minister, has to resign his seat before becoming a minister. The memberships of the two organs are incompatible. The executive is not present in the legislature and the latter carries out its work independently.
Non-Responsibility of the Executive towards the Legislature
The executive is not directly responsible to the legislature. It remains independent of legislative interferences. It is not directly answerable to the legislature but the latter can appoint investigation committees to investigate the working of the executive departments, the health of the administration and its policies. It exercises some indirect control over the executive. The latter also has some control over the former. For example in the USA, the Presidential can influence the work of the Congress through messages and control the legislature by the exercise of his Suspensory veto and Pocket veto powers. In fact, in the Presidential Model a network of checks and balances characterises the relationship between the legislature and the executive.
In conclusion, the Presidential government is a system of governance in which the executive branch is separate from the legislative branch, and the president serves as both the head of state and head of government. It has both advantages, like clear and decisive leadership, and disadvantages, like the potential for gridlock and a lack of checks and balances. It is important to note that different systems of government will have pros and cons, it depends on the specific context and cultural background of each country, the political culture and the constitutional structure.
This article on Presidential Government in Political Science is contributed by Dipshikha Anand. If you like LawStudyPoint.com do follow us on our Twitter handle.