Malaysian government

Federal Government of Malaysia
Kerajaan Persekutuan Malaysia

Ensign of the Government of Malaysia
Formation	16 September 1963
Country	Malaysia
Website	malaysia.gov.my
Legislative branch
Legislature	Parliament
Meeting place	Houses of Parliament
Executive branch
Main organ	Cabinet
Leader	Prime Minister
Appointer	Yang di-Pertuan Agong
Meeting place	Perdana Putra, Putrajaya
Judicial branch
Court	Federal Court
Seat	Palace of Justice

The Government of Malaysia refers to the Federal Government or national government authority based in the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur and the federal executive based in Putrajaya. Malaysia is a federation of 13 states operating within a constitutional monarchy under the Westminster parliamentary system and is categorised as a representative democracy. The federal government of Malaysia adheres to and is created by the Federal Constitution of Malaysia, the supreme law of the land.

The federal government adopts the principle of separation of powers under Article 127 of the Federal Constitution, and has three branches: executive, legislature and judiciary. The state governments in Malaysia also have their respective executive and legislative bodies. The judicial system in Malaysia is a federalised court system operating uniformly throughout the country.

The federal or central government is the ultimate authority in Malaysia having its base in Putrajaya. It is headed by the Prime Minister of Malaysia who is also known as the head of government.

The bicameral parliament consists of the lower house, the House of Representatives or Dewan Rakyat (literally the "Chamber of the People") and the upper house, the Senate or Dewan Negara (literally the "Chamber of the Nation"). All seventy Senate members sit for three-year terms (to a maximum of two terms); twenty-six are elected by the thirteen state assemblies, and forty-four are appointed by the king based on the advice of the Prime Minister. The 222 members of the Dewan Rakyat are elected from single-member districts by universal adult suffrage. The parliament follows a multi-party system and the governing body is elected through a first-past-the-post system. Parliament has a maximum mandate of five years by law. The king may dissolve parliament at any time and usually does so upon the advice of the Prime Minister.

Executive power is vested in the cabinet led by the prime minister; the Malaysian constitution stipulates that the prime minister must be a member of the Lower House of parliament who, in the opinion of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (YDPA), commands a majority in parliament. The cabinet is chosen from among members of both houses of Parliament and is responsible to that body. The Executive branch of the government consists of the Prime Minister as the head of the government, followed by the various ministers of the Cabinet.