Head of state: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

A head of state is the chief public representative of a nation-state, federation or commonwealth, whose role generally includes personifying the continuity and legitimacy of the state and exercising powers, functions and duties granted to the head of state in the country's constitution. In Charles de Gaulle's words, describing the role he envisaged for the French president when he wrote the modern French constitution, a head of state should embody "the spirit of the nation" to the nation itself and to the world: une certaine idée de la France.

In a monarchy, the monarch is the head of state. In a republic, the head of state is usually called the president, although some leaders have assumed other titles (some have simply used 'Head of State' as their only formal title).

The head of state and the government

In some countries the head of state is also the active head of government. These countries include absolute monarchies, other dictatorships and the so-called presidential systems particular prevalent in the Americas. The term "presidential system" in this sense can be misleading, since most countries with a president also maintain the separate office of prime minister as head of government.

In parliamentary systems the head of state may be merely the nominal chief executive officer of the state, while in reality powers are usually exercised by a cabinet, presided over by a prime minister who is answerable to parliament. However, exceptions exist even to this; for instance, in some times of exceptional crisis during the 20th century (typically German invasions), the then King of the Belgians has exercised his role as chief executive officer directly; this shows that such a direct capacity had and may still have a latent existence there, and so possibly elsewhere as well. Most recently, Liechtenstein gave its Prince unprecedented constitutional powers in 2003, including a veto over legislation, and power to dismiss the cabinet at whim.

In some semi-presidential systems, a president may be an active player in government, with the cabinet answerable in practice both to the head of state and parliament. The most striking example is the current Fifth French Republic. In the French case, in those circumstances in which parliament is controlled by the party which the president belongs to, the president is usually the dominant political player in government. When, however, the 'opposition' to the president control parliament, given that the government is answerable to parliament, the president has little choice but to share power with an 'opposition' prime minister. When this occurs, it is called cohabitation. In France this has developed into the constitutional convention that the prime minister controls the internal policy agenda, with the president limiting his role to foreign affairs, subject to the cabinet.

Chief diplomatic officer

• The head of state accredits his or her country's ambassadors, through sending formal Letters of Credence to other heads of state. Without that accreditation, ipso facto an ambassador does not take up a role and receive diplomatic status.
• He or she receives Letters of Credence, sent by other heads of state accrediting his/her ambassador to the state.
• He or she signs international treaties on behalf of the state, or has them signed in his/her name by ministers.

Example: under the Basic Law of the Federal Republic of Germany (constitution), Article 59 (1) states -

The Federal President shall represent the Federation in its international relations. He shall conclude treaties with foreign states on behalf of the Federation. He shall accredit and receive envoys.

Chief executive officer

In the vast majority of states, whether republics or monarchies, executive authority is vested, at least notionally, in the head of state. In presidential systems the head of state is the actual, de facto chief executive officer. Under parliamentary systems the executive authority is theoretically exercised by the head of state but in practice exercised on the advice of the prime minister or cabinet. This produces such terms as Her Majesty's Government and His Excellency's Government. Examples of parliamentary systems in which the head of state is notional chief executive include Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, France, Italy and the United Kingdom. The few exceptions include the Republic of Ireland, where executive authority is explicitly vested in the cabinet, and Sweden. The head of state may also be described, although, again, in parliamentary systems this is only a notional designation, as commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

Example 1 (presidential system): Article 2, Section 1 of the United States Constitution states:

The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.

Example 2 (Victorian era constitutional monarchy): Under Chapter II, Section 61 of the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act, 1900:

The executive power of the Commonwealth is vested in the Queen and is exercisable by the Governor-General as the Queen's representative, and extends to the execution and maintenance of this Constitution, and of the laws of the Commonwealth.

Example 3 (mid-20th century constitutional monarchy): According to Section 12 of the Constitution of Denmark 1953:

Subject to the limitations laid down in this Constitution Act the King shall have the supreme authority in all the affairs of the Realm, and he shall exercise such supreme authority through the Ministers.

Example 4 (modern republican parliamentary system): According to Article 26 (2) of the 1975 Constitution of Greece:

The executive power shall be exercised by the President of the Republic and by the government.

Russian Head of State and President Vladimir Putin receives the Letters of Credence from the French ambassador.

Chief appointments officer

• He or she appoints all the key officials in the state, including members of the cabinet, the prime minister (if there is one), key judicial figures and all major office holders. In most parliamentary systems the prime minister must be appointed with the consent of the legislature, and other figures are appointed on prime minister's advice. Some countries have exceptions - under Article 4 of the Instrument of Government 1974, the constitution of Sweden grants to the parliamentary speaker the role of formally appointing the prime minister. In practice, this decision is often a formality. The last time a United Kingdom monarch actually had a choice over who to pick to be prime minister occurred in 1963, when Queen Elizabeth II chose Alec Douglas-Home to succeed Harold Macmillan.

• He or she may dismiss office-holders. In most states, this may only be done on the binding advice of another office-holder; for example, members of the Irish cabinet are dismissed by the President of Ireland on the advice of the Taoiseach (prime minister). In some instances, the head of state may be able to dismiss an office holder themselves. Many heads of state or their representatives have the theoretical power to dismiss any office-holder while it is exceptionally rarely used. Its use is sometimes controversial, such as when the Australian Governor-General dismissed the prime minister during the 1975 Australian Constitutional Crisis. In France, while the president cannot force the prime minister to tender the resignation of his government, he in practice can request it if the prime minister is from his own majority.

Example: Article 13.1.1 of the Constitution of Ireland:

The President shall, on the nomination of Dáil Éireann [the lower house], appoint the Taoiseach [prime minister].

Signing bills into law

Most states require that all bills passed by the house or houses of the legislature are signed into law by the head of state. In some states, such as the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, the head of state is in fact formally considered a tier of parliament. In presidential systems the head of state often has power to veto a bill. In most parliamentary systems, however, the head of state cannot refuse to sign a bill, but may, in granting a bill their assent, nevertheless indicate that it was passed in accordance with the correct procedures. The signing of a bill into law is formally known as promulgation. Some Commonwealth of Nations states call this procedure granting the Royal Assent.

Example 1 (presidential system): Article 1, Section 7 of the United States Constitution states:

Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, be presented to the President of the United States.

Example 2 (parliamentary system): Section 11.a.1. of the Basic Laws of Israel states:

The President of the State shall sign every Law, other than a Law relating to its powers.

In some parliamentary systems the head of state retains certain powers, in relation to bills, that they may exercise at their discretion. They may have authority to:

• Veto a bill until the houses of the legislature have reconsidered it, and approved it a second time.
• Reserve a bill to be signed later, or suspend it indefinitely (generally in states with the Royal Prerogative; this power is rarely is used).
• Refer a bill to the courts to test its constitutionality (e.g. the President of Ireland)
• Refer a bill to the people in a referendum (e.g. the President of Ireland may do so in certain circumstances).

Summoning and dissolving the legislature

• A head of state is often empowered to summon and dissolve the legislature. In most parliamentary systems, this is done on the advice of the prime minister or cabinet. In some parliamentary systems, and in some presidential systems, the head of state may on their own initiative do so. Some states, however, have fixed term parliaments, with no option of bringing forward elections. In other systems there are fixed terms, but the head of state retains authority to dissolve the legislature in certain circumstances (e.g. Article II, Section 3, of the US Constitution). Where a prime minister has lost the confidence of parliament, some states allow the head of state to refuse a parliamentary dissolution, where one is requested, forcing the prime minister's resignation.

Example: Article 13.2.2. of the Constitution of Ireland states:

The President may in absolute discretion refuse to dissolve Dáil Éireann on the advice of a Taoiseach [prime minister] who has ceased to retain the support of a majority in Dáil Éireann

As the above quote by Charles de Gaulle indicates, one of the most important roles of the modern head of state is being a symbolic national symbol of the nation.

In most countries portraits of the head of state can be found in government offices, airports, libraries, and other buildings of the sort. The idea is to use these portraits to make the public aware of the symbolic connection to the government, a practice that dates back to mediaeval times. Sometimes this practice is taken to excess, and the head of state begins to believe that he is the only symbol of the nation. A personality cult thus ensues, where the image of the head of state is the only visual representation of the country, surpassing other symbols such as the flag, constitution, founding fathers, etc.

In diplomatic affairs, heads of state are often the first person to greet an important foreign visitor. They may also assume a sort of informal "host" role during the VIP's visit, inviting the visitor to a state dinner at his or her mansion or palace, or some other equally hospitable affair.

A heads of state may acquire their position in a number of ways:

• The position of a monarch is usually hereditary. There are rare exceptions to this, such as the Pope.
• The head of state of a republic is usually elected, either:
  • Directly: through popular election.
  • Indirectly: by members of the legislature or of a special college of electors.
• A head of state who is an authoritarian ruler may seize power. Dictators often use democratic titles, though some proclaim themselves monarchs. Examples of the latter include Emperor Napoleon III of France and King Zog of Albania. Francisco Franco, who adopted the formal title Jefe del Estado, or Chief of State, and established himself as regent for a vacant monarchy. Idi Amin made himself President for Life, and Kim Jong Il of North Korea bears no title at all, only the 'affectionate' nickname "the Dear Leader."

Governors-general

In some cases, where one person holds multiple headships of state, they may be represented by a governor-general. Examples are Canada, Australia and New Zealand, where the monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, resides in another of her kingdoms, the United Kingdom, and so is represented by a governor-general. Nations outside of the UK that recognise Elizabeth II as their queen are known as Commonwealth Realms, and maintain ties to the monarchy as a recognition of their colonial history.

The governor-general may fulfill many of the roles of a head of state, but is not legally the head of state, rather an appointed representative of the head of state that may act in her place in her absence from the state. A governor-general may be considered de facto head of state as the monarch rarely exercises the reserve powers of the crown. See, for example, the Queen of Canada.

Statistics

• World's longest serving current Head of State: King Rama IX of Thailand (since 1946)
• World's longest serving current non-monarch Head of State: President Fidel Castro of Cuba (since 1959)
• Nations with multiple people as Head of State: Switzerland (seven-member Federal Council); San Marino (two "Captains-regent"); Andorra (president of France and bishop of Urgell, Spain, co-princes); Bosnia and Herzegovina (three member presidency, from three different nations).
• Person who serves as Head of State in the most nations: Queen Elizabeth II serves as Head of State in 16 different independent countries.

Every head of state is provided with a state residence or residences, often called a 'palace'. Among the most famous such residences are:

• Áras an Uachtaráin - President of Ireland
• Buckingham Palace - Queen of the United Kingdom
• Élysée Palace - President of the French Republic
• Kokyo - Emperor of Japan
• Kremlin - (contains the residence of the) President of Russia
• Palace of the People - parliament and government of Romania
• Vatican Palace - Pope
• Quirinal Palace - President of the Italian Republic
• White House - President of the United States

• Government House is a generic term used for gubernatorial residences in many nations. For example, the Governor-General of Australia resides in Government House, Canberra. However, the Governor General of Canada is an exception, as his or her primary residence is Rideau Hall. Declarations printed in the Canada Gazette by the Governor General of Canada are nonetheless given the title Government House. However the residence of the first and second Governors-General of the Irish Free State was known as the Viceregal Lodge, the building's name under the preceding Representative of the Crown, the Lords Lieutenant of Ireland. (The building, which is now the residence of the President of Ireland, is now called Áras an Uachtaráin.)