Prime minister heads the executive branch of government in countries with a parliamentary system. This leader is called a chancellor or premier in some countries. In most parliamentary systems, the prime minister leads the government in the formation of domestic and foreign policy and is the voice of the nation in international affairs. Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and many other countries have a prime minister. In France, however, a president manages foreign affairs.
The prime minister is officially appointed by the head of state, who is typically a monarch, governor general, or president. In most systems, the head of state has little choice of whom to appoint. The prime minister is normally the leader of the majority party, the party that holds most of the seats in the legislature. If no single party wins a majority of seats, two or more parties form a coalition, a grouping of parties that holds most of the seats in parliament. The leader of the coalition’s chief party then becomes prime minister.
The prime minister names a cabinet, which consists of department heads called ministers. The ministers are responsible for making government policy. The membership of a coalition cabinet reflects the relative strengths of the parties in the coalition. In most systems, the ministers are members of parliament. Some systems require the prime minister to gain parliament’s approval of the cabinet or its program.
The prime minister and the cabinet are responsible to the legislature and must resign if they lose a vote of confidence. In such a vote, the legislature decides whether to support a matter of importance to the prime minister’s program. At any time, the prime minister may dissolve parliament—or have the head of state do so—and call new elections. Many parliamentary systems require a general election if one has not been held for a certain number of years.
Some political divisions within countries also have prime ministers. Canadian provinces, for example, have prime ministers called premiers.
