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AP Comparative Government
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Table of Contents
Unit 2 Overview: Political Institutions
2.1 Parliamentary, Presidential, and Semi-Presidential Systems
2.2 Comparing Parliamentary, Presidential, and Semi-Presidential Systems
2.3 Executive Systems
2.4 Executive Term Limits
2.5 Removal of Executives
2.6 Legislative Systems
2.7 Independent Legislatures
2.8 Judicial Systems
2.9 Independent Judiciaries

🗳️ap comparative government review

2.3 Executive Systems

Verified for the 2025 AP Comparative Government exam•Citation:

This topic focuses on the Executive Systems in each of our course countries and how their structure and function ⛓️ reflect the distribution of political power within the Comp Gov nations.

If you joined us in Unit 1, you know that AP Comparative Government is a vocabulary-heavy course — so that's where we'll need to start.

Didn't get a chance to check out Unit 1 yet? Be sure to look it over!

📝 Read: AP Comp Gov—Unit 1 Study Guide

Topic 2.3 Key Terms

😎 Head of Government — The executive leader or chief executive. Responsible for formulating, implementing, and executing policies through a cabinet and/or various government agencies.

🤵🏽 Head of State — Represents a nation in ceremonial functions. In some governments, this individual can also have formal powers to shape foreign policy.

👮🏾‍♂️ Commander in Chief — The top governmental official in charge of military decisions.

👔 Prime Minister — The leader of the legislature is also the head of government, in charge of formulating, implementing, and executing policies through different agencies.

👥 Executive Cabinet — Top government officials in charge of formulating, implementing, and executing policies through different agencies.

🏢 Civil Service — The non-military permanent workforce of bureaucratic agencies who implement laws and government regulations.

What is unique about this topic is that AP Exam has each key concept focus on one of the course countries and how the executive branch is structured and functions in that country, so we will do the same. We will do this two ways:

  1. We will go through each country in a short paragraph and cover the structure and function
  2. We will create a chart to examine the countries all together so that you have a visual comparison

Analyzing The Structure and Function of Executive Branch

🇬🇧 The UK:

  • Head of State: The Monarch  serves a primarily ceremonial role in the modern era, with little formal powers over Parliament.
  • Head of Government: The Prime Minister—who is selected by the majority party/coalition—is responsible for leading Parliament and their cabinet in formulating, implementing, and executing policies through different agencies.

🇷🇺 Russia:

  • Russia’s Semi-Presidential System establishes a coexisting Prime Minister and President.==
  • Head of State: The President who is elected by the people serves as Commander In Chief. The President appoints the top ministers, conducts foreign policy, and presides over the Duma in certain cases.
  • Head of Government: The Prime Minister—who is appointed by the President and approved by Congressional Approval— oversees the Civil Service.

💡In Russia’s case, the Head of State has more power than the Head of Government

🇮🇷 Iran:

  • Head of State: The Supreme Leader who, in theory, is elected and overseen by the Assembly of Experts, not the people, is the self-appointed political and religious 🛐 authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The supreme leader is commander in chief, and he appoints top officials.
  • Head of Government: The President is elected by the people, serves a 4-year term, and oversees civil service and foreign policy.
    • Already, we can see this is a bit different than the head of state in the UK 🇬🇧, which has little to no power. In Iran, the head of state has greater power and the president reports to them.

🇳🇬 Nigeria:

  • Head of State & Head of Government: Since Nigeria has a Federalist System, the President is both Head of State and Head of Government. The Nigerian President serves as chief executive, commander in chief, and head of civil service 👨‍💼. The president also approves domestic policy and conducts foreign policy. Finally, the president appoints the cabinet with the senate approval.

🇨🇳 China:

  • Head of State: The President who is chosen by top leaders of the Chinese Communist Party without input from the people. The President is commander in chief of the military and General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party.
  • Head of Government: The Premier is nominated by the President to oversee the Civil Service.
  • Any changes in top leadership happen secretly 🤫 and without the input of the people.

🇲🇽 Mexico:

  • Head of State & Head of Government: Since Mexico has a Federalist System, the President is both Head of State and Head of Government. The Mexican President serves as chief executive, commander in chief, and head of civil service 👨‍💼. The president also approves domestic policy 🗣️ and conducts foreign policy. The president appoints members of the cabinet, although some positions need the approval of the senate.

Executive Structure and Function

Course CountryExecutive Term LimitsWhere EstablishedNotes / Explanations
UKNo Formal Term LimitCommon Law (No written Constitution)Monarch serves for life. Prime Minister resigns or calls election if confidence is lost. Elections every 5 years.
Mexico1–6 Year Term (Sexenio)ConstitutionOne term only. Changed from 4 to 6 years in 1928.
Nigeria2 Consecutive 4-Year TermsConstitutionTwo-term limit. Coups have removed presidents before terms ended.
ChinaNo Term Limit (since 2018)Constitution2018 amendment removed term limit, allowing president to serve indefinitely.
Iran10-Year Term (S.L.); 2x4 Pres.Iranian LawSupreme Leader has 10-year term, never removed. President limited to two 4-year terms.
Russia2 Consecutive 6-Year TermsConstitutionTerm changed from 4 to 6 years in 2012. Putin served 2 terms, became PM, then re-elected president.
Although countries may share structures and functions, the type of regime impacts how the structures function. Let's look at the UK and Iran as an example:

Each has a head of state and a head of government, but the UK is a democratic regime, while Iran is an authoritarian regime. This impacts the powers of the head of state and head of government. In the UK, the head of state has given over power to parliament over time, so the head of state is more ceremonial In Iran, the supreme leader is head of state and is in control of the political and religious well-being of Iran. The head of government reports to him.

Let's look at another example so you can practice more your comparative politics skills :

In Mexico, the President is both the Head of State and Head of Government, which grants this individual both governmental and ceremonial powers. The President is chosen through popular vote and serves a six-year term, also popularly known as the Sexenio. This individual is responsible for the legislature and cabinets to implement federal policies. The president of China , on the other hand, is not elected by the people directly. This individual is elected through the NPC (National People's Congress) which is comprised of 3,000 delegates elected by people on a provincial level. But, they mostly serve as a ceremonial figure, whereas the Premier of China holds more legislative and decision-making power. The Premier is also not directly elected by people. We will discuss elections more in depth in unit 4.

Now that you have learned about the power and structure of the Executive, we will look next at the limits of it.

Key Terms to Review (15)

Assembly of Experts: The Assembly of Experts is an institution found in some countries with religious leadership. Its members are responsible for selecting or overseeing the appointment process for religious leaders, such as clerics or supreme religious authorities.
Authoritarian Regime: An authoritarian regime refers to an oppressive form of government where political power rests in one leader or group, who exercise authority without meaningful checks or balances.
Chinese Communist Party: The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is the ruling political party in China. It is a single-party system that holds power and governs the country.
Civil Service: Civil Service refers to individuals who work for governmental agencies or departments, providing administrative support and implementing policies on behalf of elected officials.
Commander in Chief: The commander in chief is an official who has supreme command over a nation's military forces. They make key military decisions and have ultimate responsibility for national defense.
Democratic Regime: A democratic regime refers to a political system where power is held by the people, who exercise their authority through free and fair elections.
Executive Cabinet: The Executive Cabinet is a group of high-ranking officials appointed by the head of government (such as the Prime Minister) to assist in decision-making and oversee specific areas or departments.
General Secretary: The General Secretary is an important position within political parties, including but not limited to, communist parties. This individual serves as a leader, representing and guiding their respective party.
Head of State: The head of state represents a country symbolically both domestically and internationally. They embody national unity, perform ceremonial duties, and often serve as a figurehead for the country.
Head of Government: The head of government is the person who holds the highest executive authority in a country's government. They are responsible for leading the day-to-day operations of the government, implementing policies, and making decisions on behalf of the country.
Parliamentary Monarchy: A parliamentary monarchy is a form of government where there is both a monarch as the head of state and an elected parliament that holds legislative power.
Premier: The Premier is an executive position found in some countries' governments, including China. They are responsible for overseeing the administration and implementation of government policies.
Prime Minister: The Prime Minister is the head of government in a parliamentary system, responsible for leading the executive branch and making important policy decisions.
Semi-Presidential System: A semi-presidential system combines elements of both parliamentary and presidential systems. It features an elected president as head of state alongside a prime minister who is responsible for the day-to-day governance.
Supreme Leader: The Supreme Leader is an individual who holds ultimate authority in certain countries with authoritarian regimes. They have significant control over political, military, and social affairs.