Executive Magistrates of the Roman Republic

The executive magistrates of the Roman Republic were officials of the ancient Roman Republic (c. 510 BC – 44 BC), elected by the People of Rome. Ordinary magistrates (magistratus) were divided into several ranks according to their role and the power they wielded: censors, consuls (who functioned as the regular head of state), praetors, curule aediles, and finally quaestor. Any magistrate could obstruct (veto) an action that was being taken by a magistrate with an equal or lower degree of magisterial powers. By definition, plebeian tribunes and plebeian aediles were technically not magistrates as they were elected only by the plebeians, but no ordinary magistrate could veto any of their actions. Dictator was an extraordinary magistrate normally elected in times of emergency (usually military) for a short period. During this period, the dictator's power over the Roman government was absolute, as they were not checked by any institution or magistrate.

The magistrates (magistratus) were elected by the People of Rome, which consisted of plebeians (commoners) and patricians (aristocrats). Each magistrate was vested with a degree of power, called "major powers" or maior potestas.dictators had more "major powers" than any other magistrate, and thus they outranked all other magistrates; but were originally intended only to be a temporary tool for times of state emergency. Thereafter in descending order came the censor (who, while the highest-ranking ordinary magistrate by virtue of his prestige, held little real power), the consul, the praetor, the curule aedile, and the quaestor. Any magistrate could obstruct (veto) an action that was being taken by a magistrate with an equal or lower degree of magisterial powers. If this obstruction occurred between two magistrates of equal rank, such as two praetors, then it was called par potestas (negation of powers). To prevent this, magistrates used a principle of alteration, assigned responsibilities by lot or seniority, or gave certain magistrates control over certain functions. If this obstruction occurred against a magistrate of a lower rank, then it was called intercessio, where the magistrate literally interposed his higher rank to obstruct the lower-ranking magistrate. By definition, plebeian tribunes and plebeian aediles were technically not magistrates since they were elected only by the plebeians. As such, no ordinary magistrate could veto any of their actions.

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