Republic

A republic is a form of sovereign state in which the sovereignty is vested in the entire populace, rather than in an elite (oligarchy) or an individual (monarchy). Republics are therefore, by definition, democratic in nature. In typical practice, the sovereign power of the people is exercised by the election of officials to exercise some or all of those sovereign powers according to law.
The most common feature that a republic has with other forms of democracy is rhetoric. Republics tend to have similar preambles in their constitution (if they have them) to direct democracies, have a Bill of Rights to guarantee rights to all citizens, and tend to feel that all citizens have a potential to have a say in the government. However, the realistic argument for a republic is quite different in micronations than in macronations, as micronations tend to be small enough to have full-fledged direct democracies. As well, a republic is necessarily quantized in political opinion--it may be possible for an outspoken citizen who has strong opinions in the government to not be in the legislature, and for the rest of the legislature to ignore his opinions. A republic also tends to have slower forms of legislature than a direct democracy as well, usually having more a more legalese procedure for the legislature. However, republics tend to be more stable than direct democracies in terms of lifetime, and can more easily mimic macronational governments.
The Landsraad of Shireroth is a mutated form of republican government in that the nobles of the Landsraad "represent" the people in their Duchy or Barony. Technically speaking though, Shireroth is in no form a Republic as the name of the nation implies.
Republics had been more common in the past; especially before the rise of the Apollo Sector. After the Apollo Sector came into existence, especially after the emergance of the Flying Islands of Jasonia, most micronational democracies became direct democracies. This pattern had changed later on, and most micronations that consider themselves "democracies" today tend to be republics rather than direct democracies. It is common today for monarchies to have republican legislatures as well. Some successful micronations that have a republican legislature that exist today include:
*Anthelia
*Alexandria
*Grand Commonwealth
*Cyberia
*Attera
*Gemnoviag
*United Nation of Canines
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Category:Types of government
Category:Politics