| A | B |
|---|
| ambassador | a diplomatic represenative for a country |
| amendment | a proposal to alter the language or provisions of a bill |
| assembly | lawmaking body |
| assembly person | a member of the legislature |
| bill | formally introduced proposals from Congress; they become public laws if approved by Congress and signed by the President |
| Bill of Rights | the first ten amendments to the US Constitution |
| cabinet | government officials chosen by the president to be advisors and to head government departments |
| candidate | a person running for a position in an organization at school, town, city, state, national government |
| census | an official count of the number of persons living in a country |
| checks and balances | a system where the power of each branch of government is balanced by the powers of the other branches |
| Congress | the legislature which makes the laws, and is made up of the House of Represenatives and the Senate |
| constitution | a document that describes the laws and principles of government |
| Declaration of Independence | the official document issued by the 2nd Continental Congress explaining to the world why the American colonies had to break away from Great Britain |
| democracy | a form of government where the people have a say in the decisions |
| Democrat | a person who supports the beliefs of the Democratic Party |
| dictatorship | a form of government where one person has absolute power and authority |
| election | choosing from candidates by vote |
| Executive Branch | the part of the government that enforces the laws; led by the president |
| federal | pertaining to the central government of a country |
| federal system | a system of government in which power is shared between the national government and the state government |
| government | the group of people in charge of ruling a country, state, or city |
| governor | the head of the government of a state |
| House of Commons | one house of the legislature of Canada |
| House of Representatives | one house of Congress in which each state has members based upon its population |
| impeachment | to bring changes against an official such as the president for wrong doing while in office |
| inauguration | a ceremony to welcome someone into a political office |
| independence | freedom |
| international | pertaining to several nations of the world |
| Judicial Branch | the part of government that interprets and applies the laws (e.g., all the court systems, including the Supreme Court) |
| law | a rule of conduct created by an authority (e.g., parents, school, government) |
| leader | a person who is in charge of something |
| Legislative Branch | the part of government that makes the laws |
| legislator | a person who is a member of the legislature who makes the laws |
| local | referring to the area where a person lives |
| majority | more than half of the total number |
| mayor | the head of a city |
| minority | less than half of the total number |
| monarch | a king or queen heading up a government |
| nation | refers to one's country (e.g., United States) |
| national | affecting an entire country as a whole |
| Parliament | Great Britian's lawmaking body |
| patriotic | love for and defense of one's country |
| political | concerned with government |
| political party | Democrat; Republican; Independent |
| poll | a place where votes are cast |
| president | the head of the Executive Branch of a government or country |
| prime minister | the head of the government in some countries |
| representative | someone chosen by a group to speak or act for them |
| Republican | a person who supports the beliefs of the Republican Party |
| rights | privilege or power belonging to someone by law |
| Senate | one house of Congress in which each state has two members regardless of the state's population |
| senator | a member of the Senate |
| state | a body of people organized under one government |
| Supreme Court | the highest court of the United States |
| territory | an area of government |
| veto | to refuse to approve |
| Vice-President | the second in charge of the Executive branch of government |
| voting | making a choice about something (e.g., candidates for government office) |
