The USA, which consists of 50 largely independent states, is a presidential federal republic. Every federal state is committed to the Union by recognizing the constitution. The constitution of 1787, the oldest still valid constitution in the world, safeguards the basic democratic principle of the separation of powers and grants all citizens of the USA the same basic rights.

The most powerful man in the state is the president. He has the executive power of the federal government. He is head of government, commander in chief of the armed forces and head of state rolled into one.

Legislation, d. H. Legislative power is incumbent on the US Congress, a bicameral parliament made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

A two-party system has historically developed in the party landscape in the USA. This system is supported by the Democratic and Republican parties.

Union and individual states

According to agooddir, each of the 50 states is a separate entity with carefully guarded rights. At the same time, every single state in the Union is obliged to recognize the constitution as the “supreme law of the country”. The Union guarantees the constitutional federal powers relating to the foreign policy, defense and economic policy and taxation.

The right to decide on important social issues is the responsibility of the individual states. These include a. Areas of health, education, the Union economy and the judiciary.

The constitution of 1787 already safeguards the basic democratic principle of the separation of powers.The now by 27 constitutional amendments but added original text also provides for the balance of powers (checks and balances) before balancing principle of democracy between the Union and individual states. The constitution also grants all citizens of the USA the same basic rights in the Bill of Rights, regardless of which state they live in.

The president

The most powerful man in the state is the president . The executive power of the federal government rests with him. He is head of government, commander-in-chief of the armed forces and head of state in one person, so he has extensive powers. Among other things, he appoints the government, represents the country externally, has the right to conclude contracts and has the right to veto resolutions of the Congress.

Presidents of the United States are elected every four years. The process of the presidential election is multi-stage:

• The citizens of all individual states first choose “their” electors for the presidential elections in primary elections. Each country is entitled to as many electors as it can send representatives to Congress.
• The presidential candidates themselves are not nominated until the summer of the election year. This happens at the national party conventions of the two major American parties.
• The state electors then elect the new president in the national presidential election. When voting, they are obliged to vote for the candidate of their party, so they are not allowed to vote for the candidate of the opposite party.

The Congress

The legislation, d. H. the legislative power, is up to the in the US Congress . The American Congress is a bicameral parliament:

• The Senate consists of 100 members. The senators, representatives of the states, are elected for six years.
• The second chamber of Parliament is the House of Representatives. Its 435 MPs are elected for two years.

Any legislative proposal by Congress requires the approval of both chambers and must be submitted to the President. Laws only become legally binding if they have also been signed by the President. If the president vetoed, both houses of parliament must discuss and pass the bill again. The new resolution can only be passed with a two-thirds majority. Only then is the law legally binding.

Normally, the President is neither responsible nor accountable to Congress for his actions and actions. However, Congress has the option of removing the President by way of indictment. This so-called impeachment can be initiated by Congress if there is reasonable suspicion of constitutional and legal violations by the President.

The party landscape in the USA

A two-party system has been established in the USA. This system is used by the Democratic (Democratic Party) and the Republican Party (Republican Party) supported.

In contrast to most European parties, neither party is a member or program party. Their primary role is as electoral parties for voting in state or national presidential elections. They can therefore also be compared with loose electoral coalitions without permanent membership and full-time officials. The parties finance themselves and their actions mainly through donations or sponsorship money.
Given these peculiarities of the American party system, the direct influence of different interest groups on politicians is greater in the USA than in other democracies.