This report aims to analyse the conditions in which a presidential regime or presidential-dominant hybrid regime can be considered democratic. In order to make the assessment, a matrix system was used to determine which indications need to be taken into account for the regime to qualify as democratic. These indications and matrix were previously used by Democracy Reporting International in a 2011 report, ‘International consensus: Essential elements of democracy’.
The presidential regime is usually presented as a political and constitutional regime, that sits on the opposite end of the parliamentary regime, while remaining susceptible to constitute a democratic regime. Nevertheless, this common representation does not always reflect its characteristics. Frequently symbolised by the political system in the United States, the presidential-democratic system also occurs in different countries in the world. It is often confused with another system with very different origin and function: the ‘semi-presidential’ system.
This report is available in French and Arabic.