Federation/Confederation (Encylcopedia Entry)

Abstract

This entry contrasts two forms of organizing political authority: federation and confederation. The two are distinguished as follows. A confederation is a union of equal, sovereign states (each recognized by the international community) that have formed, for limited general purposes, a common government. By contrast, a federation consists of a system of divided powers where a central government and territorial units (known variously as provinces, regions states or cantons) each have different policy responsibilities.

Keywords: federation, confederarion, separation of powers