What was the rule by the people in Rome?

During the period of the Roman Republic the consuls (the two annually elected heads of the Republic) and the senate claimed that they governed on behalf of the people. The emblem of the Republic was SPQR, which meant the Senate and the People of Rome (Senatum Populusque Romanum). In reality the Republic was an oligarchy. The Consuls were elected by the Assembly of the Soldiers, which had a voting system which favoured the rich, who had a much larger share of the vote and voted first, which meant that the resolutions were usually determined before the poor even had a chance to vote. The senate was not an elected body and was composed of aristocrats and rich commoners who were former executive officers of state.