Federal Government
The Constitution of the United States is the document that created and continues to define our federal government. It divides federal responsibilities into three branches which check and balance each other in a variety of ways.
Legislative Branch
Composed of 2 houses of Congress:
the Senate with 2 Senators for each state, elected for 6 year terms,
and the House of Representatives with the number of representatives determined by the population of each state, elected for 2 year terms.
For more information click here.
Judicial Branch
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Nine Justices sit on the Supreme Court and determine that laws put into action by the other 2 branches are valid according to the U.S. Constitution. Justices are nominated for life long positions by the President of the U.S. and confirmed by the Senate.
For more information click here.
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3 Branches of US Government
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Executive Branch
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President and Vice President
of the U.S.
Elected for 4 year term
Supports and administers federal law along with Cabinet Members appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
For more information click here.
State Government
State governments are established by the individual state and are modeled after the 3 branches of the Federal Government described above. For more information about State Government, click here.
Local Government
Local governments vary greatly depending on the type of municipality being governed. Cities, towns, villages, townships, and counties are some of the different kinds of designations that exist.
If you want to learn about your state or local government, click the button on the right to link to the State and Local Government on the Net website which will link you to your state and local government websites.
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