Roman government had two consuls, essentially co-presidents, as heads of the civil government and leaders of the army. They were elected to one-year terms in office assuring there would be a balance of power.

Eventually more positions were created to help the consuls manage the affairs of state. There were preators, who directed the judicial system: aediles, who supervised commerce and public work; tribunes,who helped the lower classes;and quaestors, who handled finance. These positions were also elected annually. To maintain a balance of power, two people were assigned to the head of these roles,sharing the same duties or matching positions. Censors were chosen every five years to revise the list of members of the Senate and carry out the census that distinguished the various classes. During a time of crisis, a dictator could be appointed to head the government for no more than six months (i.e., Cincinnatus).

The Centuriate assembly had its origin in the army. It passed laws, ratified treaties,issued declarations of war, and elected consuls, preators, aediles, the censors, and the priests of the state religion. Positions in the century or voting block were given according to wealth, which originally correlated with the amount of military equipment he could afford.

The Tribal assembly, an outgrowth of the Council of Plebians, issued plebiscites, which eventually were as binding as laws passed by the Centuriate assembly. It also elected aediles and tribunes, who, with their power of veto, could intercede on the passage of laws and in practices that were unjust to the plebians.

The Senate, an advisory council whose members were former magistrates, controlled finances and foreign policy. In practice, they were the major influence in the government, since the magistrates, followed the senators' advice and matters were brought before the the assemblies only after the Senate had voiced its approval.

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