Semi-presidential system

A semi-presidential system or dual executive system is a way that some countries organize their leaders. In this system, there is both a president and a prime minister with a cabinet. The prime minister and the cabinet are responsible to the state's legislature, meaning they must follow what the legislature decides. This is different from a parliamentary system, where the leader is chosen by the legislature, and different from a presidential system, where the president has more control over the cabinet.

One key feature of a semi-presidential system is that the executive president is not chosen by the legislature and can act independently of it. However, the cabinet, even though chosen by the president, must answer to the legislature. If the legislature votes against the cabinet with a motion of no confidence, the cabinet must leave their jobs.

The idea of a semi-presidential system was first talked about in 1959 by a journalist named Hubert Beuve-Méry and later became well-known through the work of political scientist Maurice Duverger in 1978. They used it to describe the French Fifth Republic, which started in 1958. This system is different from a semi-parliamentary system, where the legislature is split into two parts, and also different from a prime-ministerial system that was once suggested for France.

Definition

Maurice Duverger said that in a semi-presidential system, the president must be chosen by the people, have important duties, and stay in office for a set time.

Robert Elgie suggested another way to think about it: there must be a president who is elected by the people for a fixed term, working together with a prime minister and cabinet that answer to the parliament.

Subtypes

There are two main types of semi-presidential systems: premier-presidentialism and president-parliamentarism.

In a premier-presidential system, the prime minister and cabinet are mainly responsible to the parliament. The president can choose them, but only parliament can approve or remove them. This system is closer to a parliamentary system. Countries using this include Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, East Timor, France, Lithuania, Madagascar, Mali, Mongolia, Niger, Georgia, Portugal, Romania, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and Ukraine.

In a president-parliamentary system, the prime minister and cabinet answer to both the president and parliament. The president selects them but needs support from parliament. The president or parliament can remove them. This system is closer to a presidential system. Countries using this include Azerbaijan, Guinea-Bissau, Kazakhstan, Mozambique, Russia, and Taiwan. It was also used in Ukraine, Georgia, South Korea, and Germany during the Weimar Republic.

Cohabitation

Further information: Cohabitation (government)

In a semi-presidential system, the president and the prime minister might sometimes belong to different political parties. This situation is called "cohabitation", a term that started in France during the 1980s. Cohabitation can work well, providing a good balance of power, or it can lead to disagreements, depending on the leaders' attitudes, their political views, and what their supporters want.

Division of powers

The way power is shared between the president and the prime minister can be different in each country.

In France, when the president and prime minister are from different political groups, the president usually handles foreign policy and defence policy, while the prime minister takes care of domestic policy and economic policy. This way of sharing jobs isn’t written directly in the rules but has become normal over time.

Sometimes, when the president and prime minister are from the same political group, they both work together on all areas of government. But the president still decides how much freedom the prime minister has.

Changes were made to the French constitution in 2000 to make the president’s term shorter, which helps prevent this kind of split in leadership from happening as often.

Advantages and disadvantages

A semi-presidential system mixes ideas from presidential and parliamentary systems. This can be good because it allows parliament to replace an unpopular prime minister without changing the president. It also helps separate everyday government work from the president’s role, so problems can be handled more fairly.

However, this system can sometimes cause confusion. It may be harder to know who is responsible for successes or failures in government. Also, because parliament can remove the prime minister, the legislative process can become less efficient.

Countries with a semi-presidential system of government

Former semi-presidential countries

Here are some countries that once used a semi-presidential system but no longer do:

All-Palestine (1948–1959)
Armenia (1991–2018)
Bangladesh (1975–1991)
Croatia (1990–2000)
Cuba (1940–1976)
Finland (1919–2000)
Georgia (1991–1995, 2004–2019)
Germany (1919–1933)
Greece (1973–1974)
Kyrgyzstan (1993–2021)
Mali (1991–2023)
Moldova (1990–2001)
North Macedonia (1991–2001)
North Vietnam (1945–1959)
Pakistan (1985–1997, 2003–2010)
Philippines (1978–1986)
Russian SFSR (July–November 1991)
Somalia (1960–1969)
Soviet Union (1990–1991)
South Korea (1972–1988)