Unitary government: one singular organization of power

Federal government: many state governments and one federal system managing states

U.S. Federal Government

States choose some laws, Federal government chooses some others

Electoral college - every state gets a certain amount of votes in the US election

Reapportionment - The amount of seats in congress per state changes every US census

Centripetal Forces

Things that bring a region together

Promoting state cohesion

Nationalism

Unifying institutions

Organization

Centrifugal Forces

Things that push a region apart

Challenges to state authority

Less nationalism

Regionalism

Peripheral location

Social and economic inequality

Devolution - The movement of power from the central government to regional governments.