State Authority and the Characteristics of Political Power

Understanding Political Power and State Authority

Authority

Authority is the delegated responsibility given to individuals holding office, often for the purpose of training and enabling others to exercise their own responsibilities. From the standpoint of the State, authority is the power exercised by a person authorized by an institution to perform generally recognized functions.

General Government

General Government consists of the general policy or practice driving state power. Strictly speaking, it usually refers to the body (which may include a chairman and a variable number of ministers) to which the Constitution grants the executive function of the State, allowing it to exercise political power over a society.

Political Power

Political Power is a logical consequence of the exercise of functions by persons holding positions within a representative system of government. Hence, political power in democratic systems is identified primarily with the executive and legislative branches of a country.

The judiciary, the third branch of government, operates under a different scheme. Its legitimacy is not derived from the vote of the people, as is the case with the other two powers, but rather from the faithful performance of its functions.

Characteristics of Political Power

• Sovereign: It does not recognize any power equal to or above it.
• Indivisible: Splitting the power would destroy its efficacy.
• Legitimate: It enjoys the consent and acceptance of the people.
• Legal: It operates when it obeys the rule of law.
• Coercive: The State has instruments of force at its disposal to enforce decisions made.
• Exclusive: It is characteristic of the State's ownership of the power of the Empire (or supreme command).
• Unqualified: The legal standards handed down are not limited by existing standards.

Functions of Political Power

• Creative Role: The president or executive creates bodies that represent the state in certain functions.
• Allocation Function: Assigning a set of duties and powers to a court or body to justify its existence.
• Coordinator Function: Assignment of specific laws to each order or jurisdiction.
• Decision Role: The State decides the content and scope of the common good and its purposes.