The Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia, which was adopted by the National Assembly on 23 December 1991, laid the foundations for the parliamentary democracy, the legal system (which is based on respect of human rights and fundamental freedom), the principle of a legal and socially-just state, and the separation of legislative, executive and judicial powers. The Constitution can be amended following a proposal made by 20 National Assembly deputies, by the Government, or by at least 30,000 voters.

The President of the Republic is elected for a maximum of two five-year terms by direct elections. The President represents the Republic of Slovenia and is commander-in-chief of its defence forces. He calls elections to the National Assembly and performs other duties defined by the Constitution. Dr Danilo Türk was elected as President of the Republic of Slovenia on 11 November 2007.

The bicameral Slovene Parliament is composed of the National Assembly and the National Council. The parliament is characterised by an asymmetric duality, as the Constitution does not accord equal powers to both chambers.

The National Assembly, the highest legislative authority in Slovenia, is composed of 90 deputies. The National Assembly exercises legislative, voting and monitoring functions. It enacts national programmes, laws, constitutional amendments and resolutions, elects the Prime Minister and other ministers, and selects judges for the Constitutional Court, the Governor of the Bank of Slovenia, the Ombudsman and other key state officials. The National Assembly enacts its monitoring function through committees and commissions for special tasks.

The National Council is a mainly advisory body composed of representatives of social, economic, professional and local interests. Its 40 members are elected indirectly for a five-year term. Among its best-known powers is the authority of the 'postponing veto', ie it can demand that the Parliament re-discusses a certain piece of legislation. Following such a veto, the Parliament has to pass the law with an absolute majority.

At the last parliamentary elections on 21th September 2008, the 90 seats in the National Assembly were divided as follows: the Social Democrats (SD) 29 seats, the Slovene Democratic Party (SDS) 28 seats, Zares 9 seats, the Democratic Party of Pensioners of Slovenia (DeSUS) 7 seats and National Party 5 seats. The alliance of the People's Party (SLS) and Youth Party (SMS) got the same number of seats, 5, as the Liberal Democracy of Slovenia (LDS).

The centre-left trio of the SD, Zares and LDS, which formed a pre-election alliance form the core of the new governing coalition, their coalition partner is DeSUS. The prime minister is Mr Borut Pahor, the Social Democrats leader.

The Government of the Republic of Slovenia is a body of executive power and the highest body of the state administration, independent within the framework of its jurisdiction, and responsible to the National Assembly. The Government proposes laws to be adopted by the National Assembly, the state budget, national programmes and other acts through which the fundamental and long-term political directions for individual areas within the state’s competence are determined. It functions as a cabinet led by the Prime Minister. In the current government () the 15 ministers head the following ministries: Ministry of Finance; Ministry of the Economy; Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Ministry of Education and Sport; Ministry of Culture; Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning; Ministry of Defence; Ministry of Health; Ministry of the Interior; Ministry of Labour, Family and Social Affairs; Ministry of Transport; Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food; Ministry of Public Administration; and Ministry of Justice. There are also two ministers without portfolio, one at the Government Office for Local Self-Government and Regional Policy and another at the Government Office for Growth, responsible for co-ordinating and monitoring the implementation of Slovenia's Development Strategy and economic and social reforms. The Prime Minister is responsible for ensuring the unity of the political and administrative direction of the Government and co-ordinates the work of the ministers. He also proposes ministers, who are appointed and relieved of their duties by the National Assembly.

The priorities of the current government are efforts to address regional development and regionalisation, stable economic growth and public finance, employment, social welfare, science, education and culture. One of the main tasks of Slovene Government was also to prepare and lead Slovenia's presidency of the EU in the first half of 2008.

Judicial powers in Slovenia are executed by judges, who are elected by the National Assembly. Judicial power in Slovenia is implemented by courts with general responsibilities and specialised courts that deal with matters relating to specific legal areas. The State Prosecutor is an independent state authority responsible for prosecuting cases brought against those suspected of committing criminal offences. The Constitutional Court decides on the conformity of laws with the Constitution; all laws and regulations must conform with the general principles of international law and with ratified international agreements. The Constitutional Court is composed of nine judges who are elected for a period of nine years.

The Ombudsman is responsible for the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms in relation to state and local self-government authorities and bearers of public authority. On 22 February 2007 Dr Zdenka Čebašek-Travnik was elected as the third Slovene Human Rights Ombudsman, for a period of six years, by deputies in the National Assembly upon the proposal of the President of the Republic of Slovenia. Since attaining EU membership, Slovenia has also had direct access to the European Ombudsman.

Local self-government  

The authorities of a municipality comprise a mayor, a municipal council (the highest decision-making body) and a supervisory committee. The constitutional changes of June 2006 introduced the provinces to the Constitution of the Republic of Slovenia. The provinces' tasks include economic, social and cultural development, spatial development and environmental protection, traffic and transport links, etc.

Following the last referendum in April 2006, there are now 210 municipalities in Slovenia, 11 of which enjoy the status of urban municipality. The capital of Slovenia is Ljubljana, which is also the largest city; other urban municipalities are Maribor, Celje, Murska Sobota, Ptuj, Novo mesto, Velenje, Slovenj Gradec, Kranj, Nova Gorica and Koper-Capodistria. - for local government contact details see the REGIONAL GUIDE.

Slovenia’s coat of arms is in the shape of a shield with the outline of Mount Triglav in white, beneath which are two wavy blue lines representing the sea and the rivers, and above which are three gold six-pointed stars, arranged in the shape of an inverted triangle (a medieval symbol pertaining to the Celje counts, the last great local dynasty on Slovene medieval territory). As on the flag, the three national colours (white, blue and red) of Carniola - the central historic state of the territory of the Slovene people - are used.

The seventh stanza of Zdravljica ('A Toast'), a poem by France Prešeren () on the equal and peaceful co-existence of large and small nations in the world, is used as the Slovene national anthem. Zdravljica was written in 1844, and in it the poet declares his belief in a free-thinking political awareness, of Slovenes and all Slavs, promoting the idea of a Unified Slovenia, which the 1848 Revolution elevated into a national political programme. Zdravljica also became the call for a new internationalism. The music is written by Stanko Premrl and is taken from a choral composition of the same name.