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An executive president is the head of state who exercises authority over the governance of that state, and can be found in presidential, semi-presidential, and parliamentary systems.
They contrast with figurehead presidents, common in most parliamentary republics, in which the president serves symbolic, nonpolitical roles (and often is appointed to office by parliament) while the prime minister holds all relevant executive power. A small number of nations, like South Africa and Botswana, have both an executive presidency and a system of governance that is parliamentary in character, with the President elected by and dependent on the confidence of the legislature. In these states, the offices of president and prime minister (as both head of state and head of government respectively) might be said to be combined.
The above examples notwithstanding, executive presidencies are found in presidential systems and semi-presidential systems.
In order to prevent the abuse of power, checks and balances are implemented through the legislative and judiciary bodies. For example, in the United States one method is impeachment whereby the president can be held accountable if others deem their actions unconstitutional, with the most recent example being the impeachment trials of President Donald Trump.