Editing Head of state (section)

====Appointment of senior officials====
The head of state usually appoints most or all the key officials in the government, including the [[head of government]] and other cabinet ministers, key judicial figures; and all major office holders in the [[civil service]], [[foreign service]] and [[commissioned officer|commissioned officers in the military]]. In many parliamentary systems, the head of government is appointed with the consent (in practice often decisive) of the legislature, and other figures are appointed on the head of government's advice.

In practice, these decisions are often a formality. The last time the [[prime minister of the United Kingdom]] was unilaterally selected by the [[Monarchy of the United Kingdom|monarch]] was in 1963, when Queen [[Elizabeth II]] appointed [[Alec Douglas-Home]] on the advice of outgoing Prime Minister [[Harold Macmillan]].

In presidential systems, such as that of the United States, appointments are nominated by the president's sole discretion, but this nomination is often subject to confirmation by the legislature; and specifically in the US, the [[United States Senate|Senate]] has to approve senior executive branch and judicial appointments by a simple majority vote.<ref name="us constitution"/>

The head of state may also dismiss office-holders. There are many variants on how this can be done. For example, members of the Irish Cabinet are dismissed by the [[President of Ireland|president]] on the advice of the [[taoiseach]]; in other instances, the head of state may be able to dismiss an office holder unilaterally; other heads of state, or their representatives, have the theoretical power to dismiss any office-holder, while it is exceptionally rarely used.<ref name=ireland>[http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/en/constitution/index.html Constitution of Ireland] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150820000112/http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/en/constitution/index.html |date=20 August 2015 }}, Office of the Attorney General (December 2013). Retrieved 3 August 2014.</ref> In [[France]], while the [[President of France|president]] cannot force the [[Prime Minister of France|prime minister]] to tender the resignation of the government, he can, in practice, request it if the prime minister is from his own majority.<ref name=france/> In presidential systems, the president often has the power to fire ministers at his sole discretion. In the United States, the unwritten convention calls for the [[United States federal executive departments|heads of the executive departments]] to resign on their own initiative when called to do so.
* ''Example 1 (parliamentary monarchy):'' Article 96 of the [[Constitution of Belgium]]:
** ''The [[Monarchy of Belgium|King]] appoints and dismisses his ministers.<br />The [[Cabinet of Belgium|Federal Government]] offers its resignation to the King if the [[Belgian Chamber of Representatives|House of Representatives]], by an absolute majority of its members, adopts a motion of no confidence proposing a successor to the [[Prime Minister of Belgium|prime minister]] for appointment by the King or proposes a successor to the prime minister for appointment by the King within three days of the rejection of a motion of confidence. The King appoints the proposed successor as prime minister, who takes office when the new Federal Government is sworn in.''<ref name=belgium>[http://www.dekamer.be/kvvcr/pdf_sections/publications/constitution/grondwetEN.pdf The Belgian Constitution] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706134014/http://www.dekamer.be/kvvcr/pdf_sections/publications/constitution/grondwetEN.pdf |date=6 July 2011 }}, Legal Department, [[Chamber of Representatives (Belgium)|Belgian House of Representatives]] (August 2012). Retrieved on 11 November 2012.</ref>
* ''Example 2 (parliamentary non-executive republic):'' Article 13.1.1 of the [[Constitution of Ireland]]:
** ''The [[President of Ireland|President]] shall, on the nomination of [[Dáil Éireann]], appoint the [[Taoiseach]].''<ref name=ireland />
* ''Example 3 (semi-presidential republic):'' Chapter 4, Section 2 of the [[Constitution of the Republic of Korea]] states:
** ''The [[Prime Minister of South Korea|Prime Minister]] is appointed by the [[President of South Korea|President]] with the consent of the [[National Assembly of South Korea|National Assembly]].''<ref name="south korea"/>
* ''Example 4 (presidential republic):'' Article 84 of the [[Constitution of Brazil]]:
** ''The [[President of Brazil|President of the Republic]] shall have the exclusive power to:''
*** ''I - appoint and dismiss the [[Cabinet of Brazil|Ministers of State]]:''
*** ''XIII -...appoint the commanders of [[Brazilian Armed Forces|Navy, Army and Air Force]], to promote general officers and to appoint them to the offices held exclusively by them;''
*** ''XIV - appoint, after approval by the [[Senate of Brazil|Senate]], the Justices of the [[Supreme Federal Court]] and those of the superior courts, the [[Governor (Brazil)|Governors of the territories]], the [[Attorney General of Brazil|Attorney-General of the Republic]], the President and the Directors of the [[Central Bank of Brazil|Central Bank]] and other civil servants, when established by law;''
*** ''XV - appoint, with due regard for the provisions of article 73, the Justices of the [[Tribunal de Contas da União|Federal Court of Accounts]];''
*** ''XVI - appoint judges in the events established by this Constitution and the [[Office of the Solicitor-General in Brazil|Advocate-General of the Union]];''
*** ''XVII - appoint members of the Council of the Republic, in accordance with article 89, VII''
*** ''XXV - fill and abolish federal government positions, as set forth by law''.<ref name=brazil/>

Some countries have alternative provisions for senior appointments: In [[Sweden]], under the [[Instrument of Government (1974)|Instrument of Government of 1974]], the [[Speaker of the parliament of Sweden|Speaker of the Riksdag]] has the role of formally appointing the [[Prime Minister of Sweden|prime minister]], following a vote in the [[Riksdag]], and the prime minister in turn appoints and dismisses cabinet ministers at his/her sole discretion.<ref name="sweden ig"/>