Dictionary:

president

  (prĕz'ĭ-dənt, -dĕnt')

1. One appointed or elected to preside over an organized body of people, such as an assembly or meeting.
2. 1. The chief executive of a republic.
   2. The chief executive of the United States, serving as both chief of state and chief political executive.
3. The chief officer of a branch of government, corporation, board of trustees, university, or similar body.

[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin praesidēns, praesident-, from present participle of praesidēre, to preside. See preside.]

Highest-ranking officer in a corporation after the Chairman of the Board unless the title Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is used, in which case the president can outrank the chairman. The president is appointed by the Board of Directors and usually reports directly to the board. In smaller companies the president is usually the CEO, having authority over all other officers in matters of day-to-day management and policy decision-making. In large corporations the CEO title is frequently held by the chairman of the board, leaving the president as Chief Operating Officer, responsible for personnel and administration on a daily basis.

Either the working chief executive or an honorific office with a working chief executive's post below it. In voluntary bodies, ‘president’ is more usually an honorific post. In political constitutions, ‘president’ is sometimes a working chief executive (‘head of government’), sometimes an honorific post with occasional appointment or deadlock-breaking roles (‘head of state’), sometimes both.

Presidents who are heads of government are common in non-democracies but less common in democracies. There are a number of examples in Latin America but the best-known examples are in the United States and France. The US Constitution, Article II, begins ‘The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America’. His specific powers, on the face of it, are limited to: acting as Commander-in-Chief of the US Army and Navy, and of state militias, ‘when called into the actual Service of the United States’; ‘requiring an Opinion, in writing’ from the heads of executive departments; making senior appointments; and making treaties ‘with the Advice and Consent of the Senate’. The actual power of the US President is much greater than this list would suggest. In a superpower and a world with nuclear weapons, the power of Commander-in-Chief is omnipresent. The restrictions on making treaties are evaded by calling them ‘executive agreements’. Congress has tried to rein in the ‘imperial presidency’ but with no real success in foreign policy.

In domestic policy, the power of the President is much less. He may run executive departments however he pleases, but even this is subject to having their heads ratified by the Senate, which in recent years has been a substantial obstacle. Domestic policy-making is best regarded as a game in which the President, the two houses of Congress (separately), and the federal courts have a set of interlocking veto powers. For any policy to be implemented, a number of the players with vetoes must agree (the number varying with the policy area).

The Constitution of the French Fifth Republic was written by Charles de Gaulle and his allies in order to give far greater powers to de Gaulle than to the presidents of the Fourth Republic which he overthrew. He strengthened his own powers 1962 unconstitutionally but without penalty. The President of France has the power of arbitration (French arbitrage) to ‘ensure the regular functioning of the public authorities, as well as the continuity of the state’. This power is extremely wide, and it is used extremely widely when the President and the government are from the same party, as they have been for most of the life of the Fifth Republic.

The duties of head of state entail dining, attending funerals, and presenting medals. The head of state may or may not be a unifying national symbol, as may be seen for instance in the contrasting examples of Mary Robinson (Ireland) and Kurt Waldheim (Austria). The constitutional roles of the post are similar, but the unifying Robinson could be a very effective head of state, while the divisive Waldheim could not. A head of state usually has back-up powers if the head of the government resigns or the government falls, and in national emergency. An unusual use of these was the dismissal of the government of Gough Whitlam in Australia, by the Governor-General in 1975. The Governor-General of Australia acts on behalf of the Queen as head of state. Although the powers of the Australian head of state escaped unscathed in 1975, the incident contributed to a long decline in support for the monarchy in Australia. This illustrates a constraint even on decorative heads of state.

Presidents may be directly elected, indirectly elected, or appointed. The more nearly they are to being directly elected, the more authority they have in their own right, as in the French and American cases.

For more information on president, visit Britannica.com.

n.

The leading figure in a small group of men of whom -- and of whom only -- it is positively known that immense numbers of their countrymen did not want any of them for President.

    If that's an honor surely 'tis a greater
    To have been a simple and undamned spectator.
    Behold in me a man of mark and note
    Whom no elector e'er denied a vote! --
    An undiscredited, unhooted gent
    Who might, for all we know, be President
    By acclimation.  Cheer, ye varlets, cheer --
    I'm passing with a wide and open ear!
                                                        Jonathan Fomry

Quotes:

"Power is poison. It's effect on Presidents had always been tragic." - Henry Brooks Adams

"Under a Presidential government, a nation has, except at the electing moment, no influence; it has not the ballot-box before it; its virtue is gone, and it must wait till its instant of despotism again returns." - Walter Bagehot

"You don't need to know who's playing on the White House tennis court to be a good president. A president has many roles." - James Baker

"Wilson adventured for the whole of the human race. Not as a servant, but as a champion. So pure was this motive, so unfrocked with anything that his worst enemies could find, except the mildest and most excusable, a personal vanity, practically the minimum to be human, that in a sense his adventure is that of humanity itself. In Wilson, the whole of mankind breaks camp, sets out from home and wrestles with the universe and its gods." - William Bolitho

"Anybody who wants the presidency so much that he'll spend two years organizing and campaigning for it is not to be trusted with the office." - David Broder

"If presidents don't do it to their wives, they do it to the country." - Mel Brooks

See more famous quotes about President

Most of this article is about heads of state. For more on other kinds of presidents, see Non-Governmental Presidents, below. For more on the usage of term "president", see President (history of the term). For the card game, see President (game). For the Animaniacs song, see The Presidents (song). For presidencies in colonial India during the British Raj, see Presidencies of British India. For the soul group, see The Presidents (band).

This article includes a list of references or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. You can improve this article by introducing more precise citations.

This series is part of the Politics series

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Politics Portal

President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, companies, trade unions, universities, and countries. Etymologically, a "president" is one who presides, who sits in leadership (from Latin prae- "before" + sedere "to sit"; giving the term praeses). Originally, the term referred to the presiding officer of a ceremony or meeting (i.e. chairman); but today it most commonly refers to an official with executive powers.

Among other things, president today is a common title for the head of state of most republics, whether popularly elected, chosen by the legislature or a special electoral college. It is also often adopted by dictators.

Presidential symbols

As the country's head of state, in most countries the president is entitled to certain symidents, have a prestigious residence; often a lavish mansion or palace, sometimes more than one (e.g. summer and winter residence, country retreat) - for a list see Official residence.

Furthermore in some nations the Presidency enjoys certain symbols of office, such as an official uniform, decorations, a presidential seal, coat of arms, flag and other visible accessories; military honours such as gun salutes, Ruffles and flourishes, and a presidential guard. A common presidential symbol is the presidential sashes worn by Latin American presidents as a symbol of the presidency's continuity, and presenting the sash to the new pres As other countries followed the American Revolution, and deposed their monarchies, president was commonly adopted as the title for the new republican heads of state. The first European president was the president of France, a post created in the Second Republic of 1848. (The First Republic had begun with no separate executive, then established five directors, and finally echoed the ancient Roman Republic by appointing three consuls at its head.)

Sub-national presidents

President can also be the title of the chief executive at a lower administrative level, such as the parish presidents of the parishes of the U.S. state of Louisiana, the presiding member of city council for villages in the U.S. state of Illinois, or the municipal presidents of Mexico's municipalities. Perhaps the best known sub-national presidents are the borough presidents of the Five Boroughs of New York City.

Non-governmental presidents

President is also used as a title in some non-governmental organizations.

Judiciary

France

In French legal terminology, the president of a court consisting of multiple judges is the foremost judge; he chairs the meeting of the court and directs the debates (and this thus addressed as "Mr President", Monsieur le Président, or appropriate feminine forms). In general, a court comprises several chambers, each with its own president; thus the most senior of these is called the "first president" (as in: "the First President of the Court of Cassation is the most senior judge in France"). Similarly in English legal practice the most senior judge in each division uses this title (e.g. President of the Family Division, President of the Court of Appeal).

Scotland

The Lord President of the Court of Session is head of the judiciary in Scotland, and presiding judge (and Senator) of the College of Justice and Court of Session, as well as being Lord Justice General of Scotland and head of the High Court of Justiciary, the offices having been combined in 1836.

Other

The head of a university or non-profit corporation, particularly in the United States of America, is often known as president. In university systems with multiple independent campuses, the relationship between the roles of president and chancellor can become quite complicated. President is also a title in many corporations. In some cases the president acts as chief operating officer under the direction of the chief executive officer.

In British constitutional practice, the chairman of an Executive Council, acting in such a capacity, is known as a President of the Executive Council. Usually this person is the Governor but is not always so.

Many other organisations, clubs, and committees, both political and non-political are led by Presidents as well. Examples can vary from the President of a political party, to the president of a chamber of commerce, to the President of a students' union and even the president of a high school chess club.

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the head of the church is known as the President. Together with his two counselors, they are known as the First Presidency. This pattern is repeated throughout the church in quorums and in other bodies, each of which is led by a president. The Methodist Church in the UK (and also other provinces) is led by the President of the Methodist Council, and assumes the role of leading minister and spokesperson.

Presidential chronologies of United Nations member countries

Afghanistan Albania Algeria Angola Argentina Armenia Austria Azerbaijan Bangladesh Belarus Benin Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Chile China (People's Republic) Colombia Comoros Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Costa Rica Côte d'Ivoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czech Republic Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic East Timor Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Fiji Finland

France Gabon The Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Honduras Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Korea, North Korea, South Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Liberia Lithuania Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Mongolia Mozambique Namibia Nauru

Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Pakistan Palau Panama Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Romania Russian Federation Rwanda San Marino São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Somalia Somaliland South Africa (1961-1994) South Africa (1994 – ) Sri Lanka The Sudan Suriname Switzerland Syria Tajikistan Tanzania Togo Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Uganda Ukraine United States Uruguay Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe

• European Commission
• President of the Republic of China (Taiwan)
• List of leaders of the Soviet Union#Leaders of post-Soviet independent states

Sources and additional reading

• The powers, functions and functioning of presidents were reviewed by six international experts for Australia's Republic Advisory Committee in 1993. Reports by among others Professor Klaus Von Beyme (on Germany), A.G Noorani (on India), Jim Duffy (on Ireland) and Sir Ellis Clarke (on Trinidad and Tobago) outline the role of various presidencies. The full report is called An Australian Republic: The Options - The Appendices (ISBN 0-644-32589-5)

See also

• List of basic political science topics
• CEOs of major corporations
• Head of state
• Governor-General
• Mayor-President
• Minister-President (a head of government, not of state)
• Monarch
• Prime minister
• List of state leaders
• Heads of state timeline
• World government
• Presidents Day
• Mr. President (title)

References

be-x-old:Прэзыдэнт

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - præsident, formand, direktør , rektor

Nederlands (Dutch)
president, president-directeur, voorzitter

Français (French)
n. - (gén, Pol) président, (US, Comm) président-directeur-général

Deutsch (German)
n. - Vorstand, Präsident, Vorsitzender, Rektor

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - πρόεδρος, πρύτανης (πανεπιστημίου)

Italiano (Italian)
presidente, rettore

Português (Portuguese)
n. - presidente (m)

Русский (Russian)
президент, ректор, директор

Español (Spanish)
n. - director general, presidente, rector

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - president, ordförande, preses, verkställande direktör (Am.), rektor (vid vissa skolor i Engl.)

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
总统, 董事长, 总裁

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 總統, 董事長, 總裁

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 대통령

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 大統領, 会長, 議長, 長官, 総裁, 社長, 学長

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) رئيس‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮נשיא, יו"ר‬

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