what type of government does the bahamas have?
Parliamentary system Unitary state Constitutional monarchy
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 The monarchy of The Bahamas has its roots in the Spanish monarchy , under the authority of which the islands were first colonized in the late 15th century , and later the British monarchy , as a Crown colony , after 1717 . On 10 July 1973 , the country gained independence from the United Kingdom , retaining the then reigning monarch , Elizabeth II , as monarch of the newly formed monarchy of The Bahamas . The monarch is represented in the country by the Governor @-@ General of the Bahamas , Dame Marguerite Pindling . 

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 The Constitution vests the three branches of the state with different aspects of governmental power . The executive is made up of the President and the Cabinet , which is headed by the Prime Minister . The Cabinet is accountable to the electorate and is an embodiment of representative democracy . The President is elected by the people to act as a constitutional safeguard in protecting the national reserves and preserving the integrity of the public service . To qualify as a presidential candidate , stringent criteria must be satisfied . 

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 At the local level , the island 's 22 provinces are administered by a governor and provincial council . Provinces are further sub @-@ divided into regions and communes . The judiciary is modeled on the French system , with a High Constitutional Court , High Court of Justice , Supreme Court , Court of Appeals , criminal tribunals , and tribunals of first instance . The courts , which adhere to civil law , lack the capacity to quickly and transparently try the cases in the judicial system , often forcing defendants to pass lengthy pretrial detentions in unsanitary and overcrowded prisons . 

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 The Philippines has a democratic government in the form of a constitutional republic with a presidential system . It is governed as a unitary state with the exception of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao ( ARMM ) which is largely free from the national government . There have been attempts to change the government to a federal , unicameral , or parliamentary government since the Ramos administration . 

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 The 1996 constitution establishes a second house of parliament , the 100 @-@ seat Senate , was established in April 2013 and is headed by a senate president who is the constitutional successor in case of untimely vacancy of the presidency . The government recognises the authority of traditional chiefs , fons , and lamibe to govern at the local level and to resolve disputes as long as such rulings do not conflict with national law . 
