Greetings from Guatemala City! I warned yall we were going to get back-to-basics up in here. And what’s more basic than learning about our government set-up? Notta.
We’ve all heard the United States referred as a democracy. We’ve also all heard it described as a republic. So…which is it?
It’s both.
Democracy: the people (“demos”) hold the power (“kratos”). We are a government where citizens engage and are elected to serve through free and fair elections. No kings, queens, or dictators up in here!
Republic: we elect representatives in all levels of government to make political decisions on our behalf. Our wants and dreams for laws and political actions are filtered through those we elect; the represent our interest in political institutions like Congress and the White House.
Bash those two things together and you get what we really are: a democratic republic.
But, let’s get even more nerdy about it.
The United States is governed by a Constitution. Our founding document sets up the structure and broad powers of our federal government (e.g., Congress must be made up of two chambers and is responsible for passing laws). Just as importantly, the Constitution also puts limits and constraints on the powers our elected representatives and government. We must hold elections, for example, and the president can be impeached for “treason, bribery, and other high crimes and misdemeanors.” It’s our instruction manual.
So.
Are we a democracy? Yes.
Are we a republic? Yes.
But if you really want to win trivia night (and/or be the most annoying ‘well technically’ person on the planet), you now know the United States is a constitutional democratic republic.
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