An executive president is the head of state who exercises authority over the governance of that state, and can be found in presidential, semi-presidential, and parliamentary systems.
They contrast with figurehead presidents, common in most parliamentary republics, in which the president serves symbolic, nonpolitical roles (and often is appointed to office by parliament) while the prime minister holds all relevant executive power. A small number of nations, like South Africa and Botswana, have both an executive presidency and a system of governance that is parliamentary in character, with the President elected by and dependent on the confidence of the legislature. In these states, the offices of president and prime minister (as both head of state and head of government respectively) might be said to be combined.
The above examples notwithstanding, executive presidencies are found in presidential systems and semi-presidential systems.
In order to prevent the abuse of power, checks and balances are implemented through the legislative and judiciary bodies. For example, in the United States one method is impeachment whereby the president can be held accountable if others deem their actions unconstitutional, with the most recent example being the impeachment trials of President Donald Trump.
Elections
In parliamentary republics, presidents are most commonly chosen by the legislature. However, in those countries with both a prime minister and a president, methods differ. For example, in Czechia a majority vote from the public elects the president.
In full presidential systems and parliamentary systems with a constitutional presidency, the president is elected independently of the legislature. There are several methods in which to do this, including the plurality system and the two-round system. Whilst these methods use the popular vote, not all presidents are chosen in this way. For example, to be elected in the United States, a candidate must win a majority of the votes from the Electoral College, not the popular vote.
Contemporary examples
Presidential systems
Angola
Bolivia
Brazil
Burundi
Chad
Chile
Colombia
Comoros
Costa Rica
Cyprus
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
El Salvador
Gambia, The
Ghana
Guatemala
Honduras
Indonesia
Iran
Kenya
Liberia
Malawi
Maldives
Mexico
Nicaragua
Nigeria
Palau
Panama
Paraguay
Philippines
Senegal
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Somaliland
South Sudan
Turkey
Turkmenistan
United States
Uruguay
Venezuela
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Abkhazia
Argentina
Belarus
Benin
Cameroon
Central African Republic
Djibouti
Gabon
Guinea
Equatorial Guinea
Guyana
Ivory Coast
Kazakhstan[1]
South Korea
Peru
Rwanda
Sudan
Tajikistan
Tanzania
Togo
Uganda
Uzbekistan
Yemen
Semi-presidential systems
Algeria
Burkina Faso
Cape Verde
Congo, Democratic Republic of the
East Timor
Egypt
France[a] *
Haiti
Lithuania
Madagascar
Mali
Mongolia
Niger
Northern Cyprus
Poland
Romania
São Tomé and Príncipe
Sri Lanka[b]
Tunisia
Ukraine[2]
Azerbaijan
Congo, Republic of the
Guinea-Bissau
Mauritania
Mozambique
Namibia
Palestine
Portugal
Russia
Syria
Taiwan
Transnistria
Weimar Republic†
Corporate example
In the corporate environment, the head of a company is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), with the president being second in command. Leading the company's executive group rather than the overall company, the executive president in this instance is responsible for day-to-day operations. In small businesses, the CEO and executive president are the same, whereas in larger companies the roles are carried out by two separate people.