Heads of state of various countries:

• Emmanuel Macron , President of France
• Droupadi Murmu , President of India
• Joe Biden , President of the United States

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• Yoon Suk-yeol , President of South Korea
• Charles III , King of the United Kingdom
• Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva , President of Brazil

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• Bola Tinubu , President of Nigeria
• Tharman Shanmugaratnam , President of Singapore
• Vladimir Putin , President of Russia

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• Salman , King of Saudi Arabia
• Naruhito , Emperor of Japan
• Bongbong Marcos , President of the Philippines
• Felipe VI , King of Spain

The head of state is the leader of a country / sovereign state . The powers of a head of state may vary depending on the country. The head of state is usually the highest-ranking official in the country.

Titles [ change | change source ]

In most republic countries , the head of state is called the president and is usually elected by the people.

In countries that are monarchies , the head of state is a monarch (such as a king ), who gets the position through inheritance . There are many titles that a monarch could have, but they all have the same role as a head of state.

Types of heads of state [ change | change source ]

Executive [ change | change source ]

Sometimes a head of state has an executive role . This means that they take part in leading the government . In these systems, the head of state is also the head of government . For example, the President of the United States is both the head of state and head of government of the US . There are many republics that operate like this but some monarchies still have a king who runs the government.

Ceremonial [ change | change source ]

In other countries, the head of state may be a separate person from the head of government . In this system, the head of state has the role of representing the nation and being a neutral non-political leader while the head of government takes care of the executive. This system is used in many modern monarchies such as the United Kingdom . However, some republics such as the Republic of Ireland follow this system.