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Politics (from Ancient Greek πολιτικά (politiká) 'affairs of the cities') is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies politics and government is referred to as political science.

It may be used positively in the context of a "political solution" which is compromising and non-violent, or descriptively as "the art or science of government", but also often carries a negative connotation. The concept has been defined in various ways, and different approaches have fundamentally differing views on whether it should be used extensively or in a limited way, empirically or normatively, and on whether conflict or co-operation is more essential to it.

A variety of methods are deployed in politics, which include promoting one's own political views among people, negotiation with other political subjects, making laws, and exercising internal and external force, including warfare against adversaries. Politics is exercised on a wide range of social levels, from clans and tribes of traditional societies, through modern local governments, companies and institutions up to sovereign states, to the international level.

In modern nation states, people often form political parties to represent their ideas. Members of a party often agree to take the same position on many issues and agree to support the same changes to law and the same leaders. An election is usually a competition between different parties.

A political system is a framework which defines acceptable political methods within a society. The history of political thought can be traced back to early antiquity, with seminal works such as Plato's Republic, Aristotle's Politics, Confucius's political manuscripts and Chanakya's Arthashastra. (Full article...)

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Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (May 3, 1469 – June 21, 1527) was an Italian diplomat, political philosopher, musician, poet, and playwright. He is a figure of the Italian Renaissance and a central figure of its political component, most widely known for his treatises on realist political theory (The Prince) on the one hand and republicanism (Discourses on Livy) on the other. These two written works, plus his History of Florence commissioned by the Medici family, were published posthumously in 1531. After the ousting and execution of Savonarola, the Great Council elected Machiavelli as the second chancellor of the Republic of Florence in June of 1498.

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Credit: Photo: Mathew Brady/Levin Handy; Restoration: Michel Vuijlsteke

Andrew Gregg Curtin (1817–1894) was a U.S. lawyer and politician. He served as the 15th Governor of Pennsylvania during the American Civil War. During the Civil War, Curtin organized the Pennsylvania reserves into combat units, and oversaw the construction of the first Union military camp for training militia. After the Battle of Gettysburg, Governor Curtin was the principal force behind the establishment of the National Cemetery there. After serving two terms as governor, Curtin was appointed ambassador to Russia by Ulysses S. Grant, and he later served in the House of Representatives from 1881 until 1887.

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Featured lists have been determined by the Wikipedia community to be the best lists on English Wikipedia.

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There are fourteen counties in the U.S. state of Vermont. These counties together contain 255 political units, or places, including 237 towns, 10 cities, 5 unincorporated areas, and 4 gores. Each county has a county seat, often referred to as a "shire town."

In 1779, Vermont had two counties. The western side of the state was Bennington County and the eastern was Cumberland County. In 1781, three new counties (including then-called Washington that became part of New Hampshire) were created out of Cumberland County, and the remainder of the county was renamed Windham.
Today's Washington County was created in 1810 as Jefferson County; it was renamed Washington in 1814. (Full article...)
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Seal of the governor

The governor of Washington is the head of government of Washington and commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The officeholder has a duty to enforce state laws, the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Washington Legislature and line-item veto power to cancel specific provisions in spending bills. The Washington governor may also convene the legislature on "extraordinary occasions".

Washington Territory had 14 territorial governors from its organization in 1853 until the formation of the state of Washington in 1889. Territorial governors were appointed by the president of the United States. Elisha P. Ferry had the longest term of eight years and went on to become the state's first governor. William H. Wallace was appointed governor but never took office due to being elected as the territory's congressional delegate. George Edward Cole was appointed governor and took office, but his appointment was never ratified by the U.S. Senate and he was replaced as governor after four months. (Full article...)
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The Supreme Court of Canada is the highest court of Canada. It was established by the Parliament of Canada through the Supreme and Exchequer Court Act of 1875. Since 1949, the Court has been the final court of appeal in the Canadian justice system. Originally composed of six justices (the Chief Justice of Canada and five puisne justices), the Court was expanded to seven justices by the creation of an additional puisne justice position in 1927, and then to nine justices by the creation of two more puisne justice positions in 1949.

The justices are appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister. When a chief justice leaves office, the vacancy is traditionally filled by elevating an incumbent puisne justice to the position, which requires a separate appointment process. The first six justices of the Court were all appointed in 1875 by Governor General the Earl of Dufferin, on the advice of Prime Minister Alexander Mackenzie. (Full article...)
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President George Washington appointed 9 justices to the Supreme Court and 28 judges to United States district courts.

United States President George Washington appointed 39 Article III United States federal judges during his presidency, which lasted from April 30, 1789 to March 4, 1797. The first group of Washington's appointments—two justices of the Supreme Court of the United States and ten district court judges—began service two days after Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which formally established the federal judiciary. Washington's last court appointee received his commission twelve days before the end of Washington's presidency.

As the first president, Washington was responsible for appointing the entire Supreme Court; he appointed a record eleven justices, including two Chief Justices and who were confirmed from outside the Court and one former Justice named as Chief Justice by a recess appointment, but not ultimately confirmed to the position. Additionally, Washington nominated Robert H. Harrison, who declined to serve, and nominated William Cushing for elevation to Chief Justice, who likewise declined. (Full article...)
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Lesser coat of arms of Luxembourg

The prime minister of Luxembourg (Luxembourgish: Premierminister vu Lëtzebuerg; French: Premier ministre luxembourgeois; German: Premierminister von Luxemburg) is the head of government of Luxembourg. The prime minister leads the executive branch, chairs the Cabinet and appoints its ministers.

Since 1989, the title of Prime Minister has been an official one, although the head of the government had been unofficially known by that name for some time. Between 1857 and 1989, the prime minister was styled the President of the Government, with the exception of the 25-day premiership of Mathias Mongenast. Before 1857, the prime minister was the President of the Council. In addition to these titles, the prime minister uses the title Minister of State, although this is usually relegated to a secondary title. (Full article...)
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Flag of Arizona

The governor of Arizona is the head of government of the U.S. state of Arizona. As the top elected official, the governor is the head of the executive branch of the Arizona state government and is charged with faithfully executing state laws. The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Arizona State Legislature; to convene the legislature; and to grant pardons, except in cases of impeachment. The governor is also the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.

Twenty-four people have served as governor over 28 distinct terms. All of the repeat governors were in the state's earliest years, when George W. P. Hunt and Thomas Edward Campbell alternated as governor for 17 years and, after a two-year gap, Hunt served another term. One governor, Evan Mecham, was successfully impeached, and one, Fife Symington, resigned upon being convicted of a felony. The longest-serving governor was Hunt, who was elected seven times and served just under fourteen years. The longest single stint was that of Bruce Babbitt, who was elected to two four-year terms after succeeding to the office following the death of his predecessor, Wesley Bolin, serving nearly nine years total. Bolin had the shortest tenure, dying less than five months after succeeding as governor. Arizona has had five female governors, the most in the United States, and was the first—and until 2019 (when Michelle Lujan Grisham succeeded Susana Martinez in neighboring New Mexico) the only—state where female governors served consecutively. (Full article...)
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Privy Seal of the State of Wisconsin

The lieutenant governor of Wisconsin is the first person in the line of succession of Wisconsin's executive branch, thus serving as governor in the event of the death, resignation, removal, impeachment, absence from the state, or incapacity due to illness of the governor of Wisconsin.
Forty-one individuals have held the office of lieutenant governor since Wisconsin's admission to the Union in 1848, two of whom—Warren Knowles and Jack Olson—have served for non-consecutive terms. The first lieutenant governor was John Holmes, who took office on June 7, 1848. The current lieutenant governor is Sara Rodriguez, who took office on January 3, 2023. (Full article...)
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There are 23 counties in the U.S. state of Wyoming. There were originally five counties in the Wyoming Territory: Laramie and Carter, established in 1867; Carbon and Albany established in 1868; and Uinta, and annexed portion of Utah and Idaho, extending from Montana (including Yellowstone Park) to the Wyoming–Utah boundary. On July 10, 1890, Wyoming was admitted to the Union with thirteen counties in it. Ten more counties were created after statehood.

Two counties were renamed after their creation. Carter County was renamed Sweetwater County on December 1, 1869. Pease County, formed in 1875, was renamed Johnson County in 1879. (Full article...)
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Emblem of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union

The General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). From 1924 until the country's dissolution in 1991, the officeholder was the recognized leader of the Soviet Union. Prior to Stalin's accession, the position was not viewed as an important role in Lenin's government and previous occupants had been responsible for technical rather than political decisions.

Officially, the General Secretary solely controlled the Communist Party directly. However, since the party had a monopoly on political power, the General Secretary de facto had executive control of the Soviet government. Because of the office's ability to direct both the foreign and domestic policies of the state and preeminence over the Soviet Communist Party, it was the de facto highest office of the Soviet Union. (Full article...)
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The Palace of Westminster, meeting place of the House of Commons and the House of Lords

This is a list of people who have addressed both Houses of the United Kingdom Parliament at the same time. Although English and later British monarchs have jointly addressed the House of Commons and the House of Lords on several occasions since the 16th century, the first foreign dignitary to do so was French President Albert Lebrun in March 1939. The list excludes the speeches given by (or on behalf of) the Sovereign at the State Opening of Parliament and at the close of each parliamentary session.

Only four people besides the reigning monarch at the time have addressed both Houses together on more than one occasion. Nelson Mandela addressed Members of the Commons and the Lords in 1993 and in 1996 as President of South Africa. Mikhail Gorbachev addressed the Houses as a secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and a foreign delegate of the Soviet Union in 1984 and again, in 1993, on behalf of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. Shimon Peres addressed the Houses as Prime Minister of Israel in 1986 and as President in 2008. Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the Houses as President of Ukraine, the first to address in the Chamber (albeit via remote video link from Ukraine), in 2022 during the war in Ukraine. (Full article...)
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The governor of Utah is the head of government of Utah and the commander-in-chief of its military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws as well as the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Utah Legislature. The governor may also convene the legislature on "extraordinary occasions".

The self-proclaimed State of Deseret, precursor to the organization of the Utah Territory, had only one governor, Brigham Young. Utah Territory had 15 territorial governors from its organization in 1850 until the formation of the state of Utah in 1896, appointed by the President of the United States. John W. Dawson had the shortest term of only three weeks and Brigham Young, the first territorial governor, had the longest term at seven years. (Full article...)
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During its 69-year history, the Soviet Union usually had a de facto leader who would not necessarily be head of state or even head of government but would lead while holding an office such as Communist Party General Secretary. Under the 1977 Constitution, the chairman of the Council of Ministers, or premier, was the head of government and the chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet was the head of state. The office of the chairman of the Council of Ministers was comparable to a prime minister in the First World whereas the office of the chairman of the Presidium was comparable to a president. In the ideology of Vladimir Lenin, the head of the Soviet state was a collegiate body of the vanguard party (as described in What Is to Be Done?).

Following Joseph Stalin's consolidation of power in the 1920s, the post of the general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party became synonymous with leader of the Soviet Union, because the post controlled both the Communist Party and the Soviet government both indirectly via party membership and via the tradition of a single person holding two highest posts in the party and in the government. The post of the general secretary was effectively abolished in 1934 under Stalin, though it technically continued in existence until 1952, and was later re-established by Nikita Khrushchev under the name of the first secretary. In 1966, Leonid Brezhnev reverted the office title to its former name. Being the leader of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, the office of the general secretary was the highest in the Soviet Union until 1990. The post of general secretary lacked clear guidelines of succession, so after the death or removal of a Soviet leader the successor usually needed the support of the Political Bureau (Politburo), the Central Committee, or another government or party apparatus to both take and stay in power. The President of the Soviet Union, an office created in March 1990, replaced the general secretary as the highest Soviet political office. (Full article...)
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France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the Kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions.

Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, king of the Franks (r. 507–511), as the first king of France. However, historians today consider that such a kingdom did not begin until the establishment of West Francia, during the dissolution of the Carolingian Empire in the 800s. (Full article...)
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The Republic of Adygea, an enclave within Krasnodar Krai located at the foothills of the Caucasus Mountains, is a federal subject of Russia. It was originally established in 1922 as the Cherkess (Adyghe) Autonomous Oblast within the Russian SFSR for the Adyghe (Circassian) majority that lived in the area. As of the 2010 Census, Adyghe people accounted for 25.2% of the republic's population (107,048 people), while Russians accounted for the majority 63.6% (270,714 people).

Since establishing and maintaining the structure of the administrative divisions of the federal subjects is not explicitly specified in the Constitution of Russia as the responsibility of the federal government, this task falls within the scope of the responsibilities of the Republic of Adygea itself. Changes to the administrative-territorial structure of the republic are authorized by the State Council. (Full article...)
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The 20th century has been characterized by three developments of great political importance. The growth of democracy; the growth of corporate power; and the growth of corporate propaganda against democracy.

— Alex Carey, Taking the Risk out of Democracy, 1997

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Knut Arild Hareide (born 23 November 1972) is a Norwegian politician who served as a member of parliament from Hordaland and as the leader of the Christian Democratic Party from 2011 to 2019. He served as Minister of Transport and Communications from 2020 to 2021, and as Minister of the Environment from 2004 to 2005 in the second Bondevik cabinet. In 2007, he announced he would step down from the national political scene for the time being, but he returned when he was nominated as the top candidate for the Christian Democratic Party ticket in Akershus in the 2009 election where he won the county's leveling seat. After Dagfinn Høybråten stepped down as party leader, Hareide was unanimously elected to take his place at the 2011 party convention. In the 2013 election, Hareide was reelected to parliament, this time from his home county of Hordaland.

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... that after a career as political journalist, Peter Merseburger wrote biographies of Der Spiegel founder Rudolf Augstein and chancellor Willy Brandt?
... that Poles who fought in the Russian Partition during the January Uprising were detained as political prisoners in Magdeburg and Graudenz, Prussia, even though the uprising never crossed the border?
... that Nirmalendu Goon shared his doubts about Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's political decisions during the 1969 East Pakistan mass uprising in his poem Huliya?
... that prior to entering politics, Herbert Salvatierra led a troupe of carnival comparsas?
... that the Democratic Society Party was the 25th political party to be banned in Turkey since 1962?
... that María Elva Pinckert, motivated by the murder of her brother, started her political career in local politics in 1999?

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...that the Almanach de Gotha is a directory of European nobility first published in 1763?

...that four member states of the European Union have de jure opt-outs and do not participate fully in all common policies?
...that Cornelius, Oregon is named after pioneer Thomas R. Cornelius, who served in the both the Territorial and State legislatures?
...that the Society of the Friends of Peasants had significant influence on the Danish Constitution of 1849?

...that the New Zealand McGillicuddy Serious Party wanted to return to a medieval lifestyle and establish a monarchy based on the Scottish Jacobite line?

...that during the Sixth Congress of the Cuban Communist Party, Raúl Castro proposed term limits for the country's leaders?

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May 5, 2005 – A General Election in the United Kingdom sees Tony Blair's Labour government returned to office with a reduced majority of 66.
May 14, 1948 – The Declaration of Independence of Israel is made.
May 18, 1948 – The first Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China officially convenes in Nanking.

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The following are images from various politics-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Ferdinand Marcos (pictured with his daughter Imee) was a Philippine dictator and kleptocrat. His regime was infamous for its corruption. (from Political corruption)
Image 2Division of the world according to Haushofer's Pan-Regions Doctrine (from Geopolitics)
Image 3Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders campaigning for extended US Medicare coverage in 2017. (from Health politics)
Image 4Karl Marx and his theory of Communism, developed with Friedrich Engels, proved to be one of the most influential political ideologies of the 20th century. (from History of political thought)
Image 5Montenegro's president Milo Đukanović is often described as having strong links to Montenegrin mafia. (from Political corruption)
Image 6Candlelight protest against South Korean President Park Geun-hye in Seoul, South Korea, 7 January 2017 (from Political corruption)
Image 7US Military Police officer restraining and sedating prisoner, while a soldier holds him down (from Political corruption)
Image 8A memorial to the Great Famine (Ireland), a famine event in Ireland that faced elongated suffering from the UK's domestic policy failures at the time under the Prime Ministers Sir Robert Peel and Lord John Russell. (from Health politics)
Image 9The Flag of the United Nations flying at United Nations Plaza in the Civic Center, San Francisco, California. The UN is one of the key organizations in the process of the political globalization. (from Political globalization)
Image 10Sir Halford Mackinder's Heartland concept showing the situation of the "pivot area" established in the Theory of the Heartland. He later revised it to mark Northern Eurasia as a pivot while keeping area marked above as Heartland. (from Geopolitics)
Image 11The logo and slogan for change.org (from Politics and technology)
Image 12Malaysia's former Prime Minister Najib Razak was found guilty in the corruption trial over the multi-billion-dollar 1MDB scandal. He is currently serving his sentence in Kajang Prison. (from Political corruption)
Image 13Savka Dabčević-Kučar, Croatian Spring participant; Europe's first female prime minister (from Civil and political rights)
Image 14The sixth president of the United States, John Quincy Adams' "corrupt bargain" of 1824 is an example of patronage. (from Political corruption)
Image 15This is the divide of the different political parties in Estonia where in the 2013 elections, over 133,000 people (roughly 21.2% of participating voters) voted over the Internet. The 2013 elections were also the first elections to allow vote verification with mobile devices. (from Politics and technology)
Image 16Eugène Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People (1830, Louvre), a painting created at a time where old and modern political philosophies came into violent conflict. (from History of political thought)
Image 17Protesters in support of American whistleblower Edward Snowden, Berlin, Germany, 30 August 2014 (from Political corruption)
Image 18A map depicting Corruption Perceptions Index in the world in 2022; a higher score indicates lower levels of perceived corruption.
  100 – 90
  89 – 80
  79 – 70
  69 – 60
  59 – 50
  49 – 40
  39 – 30
  29 – 20
  19 – 10
  9 – 0
  No data
(from Political corruption)
Image 19Blockchain technology has created cryptocurrencies similarly to voting tokens seen in blockchain voting platforms, with recognizable names including Bitcoin and Ethereum. (from Politics and technology)
Image 20American lobbyist and businessman Jack Abramoff was at the center of an extensive corruption investigation. (from Political corruption)
Image 21Russia handing over the symbolic relay baton for the hosting rights of the 2022 FIFA World Cup to Qatar in June 2018 (from Political corruption)
Image 22Reformers like the American Joseph Keppler depicted the Senate as controlled by the giant moneybags, who represented the nation's financial trusts and monopolies. (from Political corruption)
Image 23A world map distinguishing countries of the world as federations (green) from unitary states (blue), a work of political science (from Political science)
Image 24United Nations Convention against Corruption (from Political corruption)
Image 25Countries with politicians, public officials or close associates implicated in the Panama Papers leak on April 15, 2016 (from Political corruption)
Image 26World map with the concepts of Heartland and Rimland applied (from Geopolitics)
Image 27Detail from Corrupt Legislation (1896) by Elihu Vedder. Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building, Washington, D.C. (from Political corruption)