California is a democratic republic with three branches of government. The first is the executive branch, that is, the governor and a group of elected constitutional officers. Second, there is the judicial branch which includes the California Supreme Court and the various local courts. Officials are appointed by the governor and ratified during the next general election. The third branch of government in California is the legislature. It is a bicameral body that includes the California Senate and Assembly. The Assembly constitutes the lower house of the California State Legislature and consists of eighty members, one representative from each county, who serve for three terms of up to two years. There are forty state senators who can serve up to two four-year terms. Each senator represents approximately 846,719 Californians. California practices direct democracy, a method of governance in which any citizen of a state who wishes to participate has sovereignty. It is a political system that allows citizens to modify constitutional laws, propose initiatives, referendums and suggestions for laws. In addition, they can impose limits on the dismissal of officials of the executive branch of the state. These modes of government contrast clearly with representative democracy in which state officials, elected by popular vote, hold the power to legislate. The founders of the United States did not view direct democracy as a viable option for governance because it made it easy for the majority to impose its will on the minority. Additionally, it gave less power to the newly formed legislature. In turn, the founding fathers established a representative democracy in the form of a constitutional republic. This allowed the s...... middle of paper ......011:48-49. Print."California." Institute of initiative and referendum. University of Southern California, nd Web. February 10, 2011. “California Ballot Proposals – November 2, 2010.” California choices. California Choices, February 7, 2011. Web. February 10, 2011. Kesler, Charles R. “Direct Democracy in California.” The Claremont Institute: to study statesmanship and political philosophy. The Claremont Institute, 2009. Web. February 10, 2011..Stern, Robert M. “Democracy by Initiative: Shaping California’s Fourth Branch of Government.” Vote Health. California HearthCare Foundation, nd Web. February 10. 2011.