Types of Government
What is a democracy?
A government where citizens have the power to vote and choose their leader
How do citizens participate in a democracy?
By voting, protesting, speaking freely, and influencing government decisions.
What type of government does Mexico and Brazil have?
Presidential democracy.
A citizen votes in a free election. What type of government is this?
Democracy
What is one similarity between Mexico and Brazil?
Both are presidential democracies with elections.
What is an autocracy?
A government where one leader or a small group has all the power.
Do citizens vote freely in an autocratic government?
No, voting is limited or controlled.
What type of government does Cuba have?
Autocratic
A country has one leader and citizens cannot vote.
What type of government is this?
Autocracy.
What is one difference between Cuba and Mexico?
Cuba is autocratic, while Mexico is democratic.
A country that allows citizens to vote, but the government controls most decisions. Is this a full democracy or something weaker? Explain.
It is weaker than a full democracy because citizens have limited real power.
Citizens in one country can vote but cannot protest or criticize the government. Is this strong or limited participation? Explain.
Limited participation because citizens cannot fully express their opinions.
Cuba, Mexico, and Brazil all have governments. Which on is autocratic and how do you know?
Cuba, because it has one ruling party and limited elections.
A citizen is able to vote and choose between multiple candidates. What type of government is this and why?
Democracy because citizens have real choices.
Compare citizen participation in Cuba and Brazil. What is one major difference?
Brazil allows voting and multiple parties, while Cuba limits participation.
A country has elections, but only one candidate is allowed to run. Is this truly a democracy or closer to an autocracy? Why?
It is closer to an autocracy because there is no real choice for voters.
In country 1, citizens can vote, protest, and speak freely. In country 2, they can only vote for one party.
Which has greater participation and why?
Country 1 because citizens have more freedoms and choices.
Mexico and Brazil both hold elections. What makes their elections more democratic than Cuba’s?
They allow multiple parties and real competition in elections.
A government allows elections but controls the media and limits free speech. Is this a full democracy? Explain.
No, because freedom of speech and fair information are limited.
Compare how leaders are chosen in Mexico, Brazil, and Cuba. Which gives citizens the most power?
Mexico and Brazil because citizens vote in competitive elections.
Two countries both claim to be democracies. Country 1 allows multiple parties and free elections, Country 2 restricts candidates. Which is more democratic and what makes it different?
Country 1 with multiple parties and free elections is more democratic because citizens have real choices.
Explain how citizen participation changes the power of government in democracies vs. autocracies.Which system gives citizens more influence?
Democracies give citizens more influence because they can vote and speak freely, while autocracies limit participation.
One country limits opposition parties and controls political power. Identify the country and explain how that affects citizens.
Cuba, it limits citizens’ ability to choose leaders and reduces participation.
A student says “My vote matters in Brazil, but not in Cuba.” Explain what this means using citizen participation.
Brazil allows free elections and real choices, while Cuba limits voting and political options.
Rank Mexico, Brazil, and Cuba from MOST to LEAST citizen participation. Justify your ranking with evidence.
Brazil/Mexico most → Cuba least because Brazil and Mexico have free elections and Cuba does not.