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The Government and Political System in Holy See (Vatican City State)

The Vatican is a very interesting state on its own. Unlike most countries which are ruled by presidents, prime ministers and the like; the Vatican is head by the Pope himself. Pope Benedict XVI is currently the head of state. The pope is in charge of all three branches of government since the state is under an absolute elective monarchy. What makes this type of government interesting is that usually, an absolute monarchy is passed down to the next of kin; however, this is the only government that does not exercise that kind of succession. It is non-hereditary which makes the succession by appointment. In this case, when the pope has passed on, cardinals all over the world choose the next pope who will not only lead the Catholic faith, but also govern Vatican City and attend to the affairs of the Vatican state.

Even if the Pope is the head of the state, the legislative functions are handled by the President of the Pontifical Commission. The current Cardinal President is Giovanni Lajolo. He is not only the Cardinal President but also the Governorate of the Vatican City State.

In light of the execution of laws, the Vatican can request the assistance of the Italian government to provide for the punishment for its criminals. This agreement is in accordance with the Lateran Treaty that was adopted in 1929. It was in the year 1969 that the Vatican abolished capital punishment for those who were to be persecuted for their crimes.