What word describes the Federation, Klingon Empire, Dominion in Star Trek?

There are many territorial areas and governmental bodies in Star Trek:

• The United Federation of Planets


• The Klingon Empire


• The Romulan Empire


• The Ferengi Alliance


• The Dominion

and probably a host of others I'm forgetting about.

What word is used to refer to such territorial/governmental bodies in Star Trek? I considered "nation," but that seemed very odd and out of place. "Federation" makes sense if the participants are willing, but that isn't the case for all of these, not to mention it favors the Federation's name quite a bit. "Union" might be logical, but it also seems out of place. How would one refer to them? I strongly prefer an in universe answer, if one exists.