ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

The Three Types of Legitimate Rule

Legitimate rule is when a leader or a group of people decide to make a set of rules that everyone must follow. These rules can be different things like how a country is governed (a type of government) or how people should treat each other. There are three types of legitimate rule.

1. Autocracy is when a single person makes all the decisions and has all of the power. This is usually a king or queen, a dictator, or someone like that.

2. Democracy is when people get to make certain decisions together. Everyone gets a say in how things are done and the decisions that are made by majority vote.

3. Republic is when people choose representatives who make the decisions for them. These representatives have to make sure that the decisions they make follow the wishes of the people who chose them.