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It's a little difficult to discuss all indigenous cultures in North America of the same era, even if we limit to region and century. The indigenous cultures of what we now know as Mexico were quite significantly different by comparison with those in the northern US and southern Canada. However, we can surmise some significant things about indigenous governance by examining one of the most famous examples: the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. [Here] (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zmIjv-Go4WA/Uvma7Jvz77I/AAAAAAAAELQ/GsIo2DgGy7I/s1600/iroquois-map.gif) is a map to give you some sense of its location: modern day New York, Michigan, southern Ontario and Quebec, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, even in to West Virginia.

The Confederacy was a [union] (http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/iroquois/) originally between five distinct nations (Seneca, Cayuga, Oneida, Onondaga and Mohawk.) A sixth, the Tuscarora, are recorded to have joined in 1714 as partial partners and 1722 as full partners.

While the nations spoke and continue to speak distinct but similar languages, they were united by a common principle-- a combination of a constitutional document and a sacred covenant with the Creator and each other. This is the Great Law of Peace (Kaianere'ko:wa). It is both a civil and religious idea; in oral history it is recorded to have been given to the 16th century prophet [Hiawatha] (https://archive.org/details/legendsofiroquoi00canf)-- whom we know to have really existed, born in 1525 and dying in 1595-- by the Great Peacemaker, a mythic religious figure. (A note on that source: it is published in 1902, so some of the words are not necessarily ones we would use today.)

[Here] (http://www.ganienkeh.net/thelaw.html) is a translated version of the Great Law of Peace. It outlines many significant foundations of political life in the Confederacy, and how the government actually functioned: who from which nation must be present at council meetings, the order in which speaking is to occur, how clan inheritance happens, etc.

One of the interesting constitutional differences between the Great Law of Peace and comparable European documents of the time is the frequent and repeated references to the role of women in the governance structure. While women were not permitted to serve as chiefs, they do have a constitutional role as "clan mothers," who select chiefs and can discipline chiefs not seen to be performing their duties appropriately. Wampum #52 and #53 in that document are a good example:

> WAMPUM #52 HOW CLAN MOTHERS CORRECT ERRING CHIEFS
The Otiyaner women, heirs of the chieftainship titles, shall, should it be necessary, correct and admonish the holders of the titles. Those only who attend the Council may do this and those who do not shall not object to what has been said nor strive to undo the action. Note: The Clan Mothers (Otiyaner) may correct and give friendly advice to the Rotiyaner (Chiefs).

> WAMPUM #53 RULES FOR CLAN MOTHERS TO FOLLOW IN SELECTING A NEW CHIEF. When the Otiyaner women, holders of a chieftainship title, select one of their sons as a candidate, they shall select one who is trustworthy, of good character, of honest disposition, one who manages his own affairs, and supports his own family, if any, and who has proven a faithful man to his nation. Note: When the Clan Mothers "select one of their sons" it means one of the men in the Clan who has the proper qualifications. It does not necessarily mean one of their own natural sons, the Clan being a political family.

I would recommend reading through the whole Great Law; it's not too long and presents a very clear picture of what political life was like under the Confederacy.

Now, "common" is a bit of an issue in your first question. The Great Law was partly created because there was a dense population of indigenous peoples in the region; they needed to be able to get along despite their cultural differences and close proximity. Further north and west, these issues of population density were less of a problem, and as a result the need for strong alliances wasn't as pronounced (at least until later on, more like the late 19th century.) However, inherited leadership and councils of family leaders were still reportedly common.

As a minor fun fact, the Confederacy (which we now call the Six Nations) is still a cultural and political force in the region. It's not uncommon to see [Six Nations] (https://www.amazon.com/Iroquois-Nations-Native-Banner-Quality/dp/B00BY5VHDO) flags flying high on Aboriginal Day (June 21) or at different pow-wows and celebration events. The Six Nations reserve is the largest in Canada, with about 25,000 community members registered. (Typically reserves have 5,000 members or fewer.)