Politics & Political Systems, SUF-U.S
Monarchies, republics, democracies, dictatorships, and hybrids of every kind all offer ways of organizing power. Explore the systems and ideas through which societies govern themselves.
Politics & Political Systems Encyclopedia Articles By Title
suffrage
suffrage, in representative government, the right to vote in electing public officials and adopting or rejecting......
Sugar Act
Sugar Act, (1764), in U.S. colonial history, British legislation aimed at ending the smuggling trade in sugar and......
Super Tuesday
Super Tuesday, in the United States, a Tuesday in February or March of a presidential election year on which several......
superpower
superpower, a state that possesses military or economic might, or both, and general influence vastly superior to......
Swadeshi Movement
Swadeshi Movement, anti-colonial agitation in British India, formally launched in 1905, and the first organized......
SWAPO Party of Namibia
SWAPO Party of Namibia, political party that began as a liberation movement in Namibia (formerly South West Africa)......
Swaraj Party
Swaraj Party, Indian political party established in late 1922–early 1923 by members of the Indian National Congress......
Swedish Social Democratic Party
Swedish Social Democratic Party (SAP), socialist political party in Sweden, the country’s oldest existing political......
Swiss People’s Party
Swiss People’s Party, conservative Swiss political party. The Swiss People’s Party (SVP) was founded in 1971 by......
syndicalism
syndicalism, a movement that advocates direct action by the working class to abolish the capitalist order, including......
taifa
taifa, a faction or party, as applied to the followers of any of the petty kings who appeared in Muslim Spain in......
Taika era reforms
Taika era reforms, (“Great Reformation of the Taika Era”), series of political innovations that followed the coup......
Taliban
Taliban, ultraconservative political and religious faction that emerged in Afghanistan in the mid-1990s following......
Tammany Hall
Tammany Hall, the executive committee of the Democratic Party in New York City historically exercising political......
tanistry
tanistry, a custom among various Celtic tribes—notably in Scotland and Ireland—by which the king or chief of the......
Tanzimat
Tanzimat, (Turkish: “Reorganization”), series of reforms promulgated in the Ottoman Empire between 1839 and 1876......
Tea Act
Tea Act, (1773), in British American colonial history, legislative maneuver by the British ministry of Lord North......
Tea Party movement
Tea Party movement, conservative populist social and political movement that emerged in 2009 in the United States,......
technocracy
technocracy, government by technicians who are guided solely by the imperatives of their technology. The concept......
Telugu Desam Party
Telugu Desam Party (TDP), regional political party in Andhra Pradesh state, southeastern India. It also at times......
Tempō reforms
Tempō reforms, (1841–43), unsuccessful attempt by the Tokugawa shogunate (1603–1868) to restore the feudal agricultural......
Tenentismo
Tenentismo, (from Portuguese tenente, “lieutenant”), movement among young, idealistic Brazilian army officers,......
Tennessee Valley Authority
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), U.S. government agency established in 1933 to control floods, improve navigation,......
term limits
term limits, legal restrictions placed, typically in a country or region’s constitution, on the length of time......
terrorism
terrorism, the calculated use of violence to create a general climate of fear in a population and thereby to bring......
Text of the Constitution of the United States
On September 17, 1787, the United States Constitution—the oldest written constitution still in effect today—was......
The 6 Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy
The Iroquois (Haudenosaunee; “People of the Longhouse”) Confederacy of upper New York state and southeastern Canada......
The Founding Fathers and Slavery
Although many of the Founding Fathers acknowledged that slavery violated the core American Revolutionary ideal......
The Founding Fathers, Deism, and Christianity
For some time the question of the religious faith of the Founding Fathers has generated a culture war in the United......
The Legacy of Order 9066 and Japanese American Internment
On Feb. 19, 1942, Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, granting Secretary of War Henry Lewis......
The Surprisingly Disorderly History of the U.S. Presidential Succession Order
In 1981 U.S. Pres. Ronald Reagan was shot during an assassination attempt. While he was incapacitated in the hospital,......
theocracy
theocracy, government by divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided. In many theocracies,......
Thermidorian Reaction
Thermidorian Reaction, in the French Revolution, the parliamentary revolt initiated on 9 Thermidor, year II (July......
thing
thing, in medieval Scandinavia, the local, provincial, and, in Iceland, national assemblies of freemen that formed......
Third Department
Third Department, office created by Emperor Nicholas I (July 15 [July 3, old style], 1826) to conduct secret police......
Third Estate
Third Estate, in French history, with the nobility and the clergy, one of the three orders into which members were......
third way
third way, in politics, a proposed alternative between two hitherto dominant models, namely left-wing and right-wing......
Thirty Tyrants
Thirty Tyrants, (404–403 bc) Spartan-imposed oligarchy that ruled Athens after the Peloponnesian War. Thirty commissioners......
Three Principles of the People
Three Principles of the People, the ideological basis of the political program of the Chinese Nationalist leader......
Three-fifths compromise
Three-fifths compromise, compromise agreement between delegates from the Northern and the Southern states at the......
timar
timar, in the Ottoman Empire, grant of lands or revenues by the sultan to an individual in compensation for his......
Timeline of the Indian Independence Movement
After a century-long struggle for freedom, India and Pakistan won independence from British colonial rule at midnight......
Timeline of Voting Rights in the United States
The right to vote is a hallmark of democratic governments. The strength of a democracy can be measured by its free......
Today in History—April 26: The Midnight Ride of Sybil Ludington
Paul Revere, but make it a 16-year-old girl. Enter Sybil Ludington. On this day in 1777, she rode some 40 miles......
Today in History—April 29: That Time the Writer of James Bond Was a Real Spy
On this day in 1943, a body was dropped in the ocean near the sleepy shores of Huelva, Spain. But this was no sailor......
Today in History—August 12: Zheng He’s Treasure Fleet Returns
On this day in 1415, the largest wooden ships ever built brought home a remarkable prize for the emperor of imperial......
Today in History—February 15: The Headline That Led America to War
On a pitch-black night in 1898, as the 324-foot American battleship USS Maine lay at anchor in Havana Harbor, Cuba,......
Today in History—July 4: The “Misguided Americans” and Their “Inadmissible Claim of Independence”
It was cool and sunny—a pretty, if ordinary, summer day in Philadelphia. But inside the Pennsylvania State House,......
Today in History—July 9: The Treaty Celebration That Sent Napoleon Running
On this day in 1807, French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte signed the second Treaty of Tilsit with Russia and Prussia......
Today in History—June 26: The Berlin Airlift Takes Flight
After World War II and the fall of the Third Reich—the Nazi regime that left scars crisscrossing Europe—no one......
Today in History—June 5: Robert F. Kennedy’s Assassination
The Kennedys are basically American political royalty. They’ve been relevant since the first Kennedy to enter politics,......
Today in History—March 30: Why the U.S. Bought Alaska—When No One Else Wanted It
On this day—barely, it was about 4 AM, after an all-nighter negotiating session—in 1867, U.S. Secretary of State......
Today in History—March 4: Happy (Old) Inauguration Day
On this day in history, a whole bunch of people became president. Here’s the roll call: George Washington, John......
Today in History—May 10: Victoria Woodhull becomes the first woman nominated for U.S. president
Clairvoyant. Medium. Stage actress. Free love activist. Suffragist. Communist. Capitalist. Stock broker. Newspaper......
Today in History—May 14: The Beer Parade That Helped End Prohibition
You’ve heard of “no taxation without representation,” but what about “beer for taxation”? Yes, on this day in 1932,......
Today in History—May 28: Publication of the Federalist Papers
New Yorkers were a skeptical bunch. The U.S. Constitution had been drafted over the summer of 1787 at the convention......
Today in History—November 11: The Armistice That Ended World War I
At 11 am on this day in 1918, more than four years of fighting in World War I came to an end. But the official......
Today in History—November 5: Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot
On this day in 1605, English authorities caught a man in the cellar underneath the House of Lords in London, surrounded......
Today in History—October 22: The George Washington of Texas
Sam Houston became the first democratically elected president of Texas on this day in 1836, but his relationship......
Today in History—September 2: The Formation of the Principality of Sealand
There is a micronation on a fortress at sea off the coast of Great Britain, and the British government once considered......
totalitarianism
totalitarianism, form of government that theoretically permits no individual freedom and that seeks to subordinate......
town meeting
town meeting, in the United States, an assembly of local qualified voters in whom is vested the governmental authority......
Townshend Acts
Townshend Acts, (June 15–July 2, 1767), in colonial U.S. history, series of four acts passed by the British Parliament......
township
township, unit of government found primarily in the northeast and north central United States; it is a subdivision......
trade agreement
trade agreement, any contractual arrangement between states concerning their trade relationships. Trade agreements......
Trade, Board of
Board of Trade, English governmental advisory body established by William III in May 1696 to replace the Lords......
transitional justice
transitional justice, national institutions or practices that identify and address injustices committed under a......
Transportation Security Administration
Transportation Security Administration (TSA), U.S. agency created following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks......
Transportation, U.S. Department of
U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), executive agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for programs......
Treasury, U.S. Department of the
The U.S. Treasury Department serves as the manager of the country’s finances. Its responsibilities include printing......
treaty
treaty, a binding formal agreement, contract, or other written instrument that establishes obligations between......
Trent, Council of
Council of Trent, 19th ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church, held in three parts from 1545 to 1563.......
Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire
Shortly before 5:00 pm on March 25, 1911, the approximately 500 people working at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory......
tributary system
tributary system, model by which China conducted foreign relations from approximately the Han dynasty (206 bce–220......
Trinamool Congress
Trinamool Congress, political party in India formed by Mamata Banerjee in 1998 and active primarily in her home......
Trotskyism
Trotskyism, a Marxist ideology based on the theory of permanent revolution first expounded by Leon Trotsky (1879–1940),......
Troubles, Time of
Time of Troubles, period of political crisis in Russia that followed the demise of the Rurik dynasty (1598) and......
Trusteeship Council
Trusteeship Council, one of the principal organs of the United Nations (UN), designed to supervise the government......
Truth and Reconciliation Commission, South Africa
Truth and Reconciliation Commission, South Africa (TRC), courtlike body established by the new South African government......
truth commission
truth commission, an official body established to investigate a series of human rights violations, war crimes,......
Tucumán, Congress of
Congress of Tucumán, assembly that met in the city of Tucumán (now San Miguel de Tucumán) and declared the independence......
Turning Point USA
Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is a political organization started by the activist Charlie Kirk in 2012. Its primary......
Twelfth Amendment
Twelfth Amendment, amendment (1804) to the Constitution of the United States repealing and revising presidential......
Twentieth Amendment
Twentieth Amendment, amendment (1933) to the Constitution of the United States indicating the beginning and ending......
Twenty-fifth Amendment
Twenty-fifth Amendment, amendment (1967) to the Constitution of the United States that set forth succession rules......
Twenty-one Demands
Twenty-one Demands, (Jan. 18, 1915), claims made by the Japanese government to special privileges in China during......
Twenty-second Amendment
Twenty-second Amendment, amendment (1951) to the Constitution of the United States effectively limiting to two......
Two Treatises of Government
Two Treatises of Government, major statement of the political philosophy of the English philosopher John Locke,......
two-party system
two-party system, political system in which the electorate gives its votes largely to only two major parties and......
tyranny
tyranny, in the Greco-Roman world, an autocratic form of rule in which one individual exercised power without any......
tyrant
tyrant, a cruel and oppressive ruler or, in ancient Greece, a ruler who seized power unconstitutionally or inherited......
U.K. Votes on “Brexit” from EU
When Britons vote in a national referendum on June 23, 2016, on whether to leave the European Union (EU), they......
U.S. Agency for International Development
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), former lead U.S. government agency working in more than 100......
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is the federal government’s main source for labor market and economic......
U.S. Census Bureau
U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. government agency that collects and quantifies facts and data about the people and the......
U.S. Commission on National Security/21st Century
U.S. Commission on National Security/21st Century (USCNS/21), U.S. congressional committee established in 1998......
U.S. Exits Paris Climate Agreement
At a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden on June 1, 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump declared his intention......
U.S. Forest Service
U.S. Forest Service (USFS), federal agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) charged with oversight,......
U.S. Secret Service
U.S. Secret Service, federal law-enforcement agency within the United States Department of Homeland Security tasked......
U.S.-Canada relations: A timeline
This history of the relationship between the United States and Canada is perhaps best told in the story of the......