What mechanism keeps leaders accountable in this system?

• A. Clan mothers' oversight and ability to remove leaders.
• B. Secret elections every year.
• C. Divine right of kings.
• D. Military force.

Answer: (A)

Accountability comes from clan mothers who oversee leaders and can remove them. In Haudenosaunee governance, clan mothers from each maternal clan appoint the leaders and hold real power to depose them if they fail to serve the people's interests. This creates a built-in check on authority, linking a leader’s legitimacy directly to the support of the clan rather than to birthright or force. The system prioritizes consent, responsibility, and ongoing oversight, so leaders must answer to the clans that chose them. Unlike ideas of secret yearly elections, divine right, or using military force to enforce authority, this mechanism centers the clan mothers’ authority as the outward safeguard of good leadership.