Hundreds of countries make up the world, but there are only handful of different ways they're governed. The nine broad types of government system worldwide are:
- Constitutional monarchy
- Semi-constitutional monarchy
- Absolute monarchy
- Presidential republic
- Semi-presidential republic
- Parliamentary republic
- One-party state
- Republic with an executive presidency nominated by or elected by the legislature
Now that's cleared up, let's see which countries across the globe follow which form of governance. (Visual Capitalist notes that the systems are charted according to each country’s legal framework, meaning that while some countries may share the same legally recognized government system, how they actually rule may be quite different.)
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Most countries around the world are either a presidential or semi-presidential republic. In the former, an independent chief executive has extensive powers when it comes to domestic affairs and foreign policy. In semi-presidential republics, on the other hand, the president is the head of state while the prime minister is the head of government.
Just Brunei, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Eswatini and the Vatican City are absolute monarchies, where the ruler has total control over governance of the country.
In a one-party state such as China, just one political party is permitted to form a government — all others are either outlawed or have their participation in elections limited.
