Government Type: Parliamentary republic.
Independence: The Czech Republic was established January 1, 1993 (former Czechoslovak state established 1918).
Constitution: Signed December 16, 1992.
Branches: Executive: president (chief of state), prime minister (head of government), cabinet. Legislative: Chamber of Deputies, Senate. Judicial: Supreme Court, Constitutional Court.
Political parties: Civic Democratic Party (ODS), Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD), Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSCM), Christian and Democratic Union-Czechoslovak Peoples Party (KDU-CSL), Green Party (SZ).
Suffrage: Universal at 18.

For more information on the political and economic environment of the country, please visit the U.S. Department of State Background Notes.