Characteristics of republics
[edit] Head of state
In most modern republics, the head of state is termed president. Other titles that have been used are consul, doge, archon and many others. In republics that are also democracies, the head of state is selected as the result of an election. This election can be indirect, such as if a council of some sort, or a parliament is elected by the people, and this council or parliament then elects the head of state. In these kinds of republics, the usual term for a president is in the range of four to seven years. In some countries the constitution limits the number of terms the same person can be elected as president.
If the head of state of a republic is at the same time the head of government, this is called a presidential system (example: United States). In semi-presidential systems and parliamentary republics, where the head of state is not the same person as the head of government, the latter is usually termed prime minister, premier (from the French term for "first"), president of the ministers' council, or chancellor. Depending on what the president's specific duties are (for example, advisory role in the formation of a government after an election), and varying by convention, the president's role may range from the ceremonial and apolitical to influential and highly political. The Prime Minister is responsible for managing the policies and the central government. The rules for appointing the president and the leader of the government, in some republics permit the appointment of a president and a prime minister who have opposing political convictions: in France, when the members of the ruling cabinet and the president come from opposing political factions, this situation is called cohabitation. In countries such as Germany and India, however, the president needs to be strictly non-partisan.
