The Grand Coalition: Precedents and Prospects

2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludger Helms
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Party System ◽  
Grand Coalition ◽  
Coalition Government ◽  
Federal System ◽  
System Reform ◽  
Federal Election ◽  
Federal Level ◽  
Angela Merkel ◽  
Basic Parameters

While the Federal Republic has been famously characterized as a "grand coalition state," the Merkel government, formed in the after-math of the 2005 federal election, is only the second CDU/CSU-SPD coalition at the federal level since 1949. A comparison of the present administration with the first grand coalition government (1966-1969) reveals a wealth of differences that include some of the basic parameters of governing and governance in Germany, such as the structure of the party system and the overall public climate. Also, the personnel features and patterns of informal coalition governance under Chancellors Angela Merkel and Kurt-Georg Kiesinger display major differences. Arguably the single most important difference between the two administrations, however, relates to the level of public policy, with the Merkel government seeking to reverse some of the key decisions of its historical predecessor. Such u-turn dynamics have been particularly tangible in the field of federal system reform.

Follow-up to the Grand Coalition: The German Party System before and after the 2013 Federal Election

2014 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 19-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Decker
Keyword(s):  
Party System ◽  
Grand Coalition ◽  
Federal Election ◽  
Federal Level ◽  
Electoral Strategies ◽  
The Future ◽  
Before And After

The recent federal elections refuted a number of established hypotheses on the development of the German party system and contradicted the electoral strategies of nearly all parties involved. The outcome was neither a further fragmentation of the parliamentary landscape nor the unavoidable establishment of a grand coalition. On the contrary, in most cases, the respective parties failed as a result of their own mistakes in selecting adequate campaign issues, strategies and/or candidates. Aside from party-specific questions, such as the trajectories of both the AfD and the FDP, the future of the German party system seems largely dependent on the relationships between the three left-of-center parties at the federal level.

Austria: Phasing-Out Grand Coalition Government

2021 ◽  
pp. 41-80
Author(s):  
Wolfgang C. Müller
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Party ◽  
Party System ◽  
Grand Coalition ◽  
Coalition Government ◽  
People's Party ◽  
Coalition Politics ◽  
Underlying Principle ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Government ◽  
Post War

Grand coalition government of the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP and the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) had been the hallmark of post-war Austria but the historic ‘grand coalition’ formula seems exhausted. The rationale for maintaining this cooperation vanished, electoral changes undermined the former duopoly of these parties, and party system changes brought new players into the game. Yet at the government level alternatives involving the Freedom Party (FPÖ) have proved unstable as in each case an FPÖ event brought down the government or prevented its renewal. The chapter shows how routine formateur-led processes of coalition formation resulting in anticipated outcomes contrast with a few instances which significantly deviate. Coalition governance is characterized by the use of an elaborated set of rules and instruments and great continuity over time and different types of coalition. Accordingly, the underlying principle of coalition politics has been the ‘coalition compromise’ model, with government policies to be largely agreed between the coalition partners. In practice, ministerial discretion tends to shift government policy output towards the model of ‘constrained ministerial government’. Most coalitions terminated early because of inter-party conflict.

Die hessische Landtagswahl vom 28. Oktober 2018: Fortsetzung der schwarz-grünen Wunschehe mit starken Grünen und schwacher CDU

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Debus ◽  
Thorsten Faas
Keyword(s):  
Bargaining Power ◽  
Party System ◽  
Prime Minister ◽  
Coalition Government ◽  
Election Campaigns ◽  
Counting Problems ◽  
Election Result ◽  
Coalition Governments ◽  
Angela Merkel ◽  
Previous Election

Federal politics has often influenced elections to the Hesse state parliament . This was also true for the election 2018, which was not only decisive for the future of the incumbent black-green coalition government led by Prime Minister Volker Bouffier (CDU), but also for the fate of the federal party chairs of CDU and SPD, Angela Merkel and Andrea Nahles, at the federal level . Compared to previous election campaigns in Hesse, the 2018 campaign was less polarized, visible also in the openness of CDU, SPD, Greens and FDP in terms of forming coalition governments . The election result continued the transformation of the German party system into one with six parliamentary parties . After some vote counting problems, the incumbent coalition, which won a small parliamentary majority, was - in line with established theories of government formation - renewed . As a result of their gains in votes, the Greens’ position was stronger than five years ago, which led to more offices and to a stronger bargaining power in the coalition negotiations .

scholarly journals Chancellor Hegemony: Party Politics and the Bundestag Party System after the 2013 Federal Election

2014 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 41-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles Lees
Keyword(s):  
Party System ◽  
Party Politics ◽  
Good News ◽  
The Political ◽  
Federal Election ◽  
Voting Power ◽  
Angela Merkel ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Individual ◽  
First Time

The eighteenth Bundestag elections of 22 September 2013 brought important changes to the Bundestag party system, some of which are contingent but others of which are more systemic and profound. The narrow failure of the FDP to scale the electoral threshold has had an impact on coalition negotiations and the improvement in the overall vote share for the CDU/CSU and the SPD, for the first time since the 1960s represents a significant, if probably only temporary, concentration of the German party system in the Bundestag. More systemically, the election saw a continuation of the ongoing redistribution of voting power in the Bundestag in favor of the catch-all parties as formateurs. The article also discusses how the increased importance of the potential formateuer parties has gone hand-in-hand with a greater focus on the individual leading candidates, and concludes that this is particularly good news for the CDU/CSU, given the political qualities of Angela Merkel and the failure of the SPD to find and support a leading candidate that can match her political acumen.

scholarly journals The Lesson from the Modern American Federalism: A Challenge to Effective Public Policy Performance

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 300-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geiguen Shin
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Local Governments ◽  
Power Relationship ◽  
Federal System ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Quarter Century ◽  
Policy Performance ◽  
The Past ◽  
State And Local ◽  
American Federalism

Abstract Contemporary U.S. federalism particularly since the late1960s has evolved over the course of pluralism alternating exercisable governmental powers between the federal and state governments. The complexity of the power relationship has been observed in a variety of policies during the past quarter-century as has the discussion of whether or not contemporary U.S. federalism has developed in a way that increase effective public policy performance. Focusing mainly on the period of the past 50 years of U.S. federalism history, this article suggests that federalism dynamics have not exercised either constant liberal or conservative influence on public policy performance. Instead, this article suggests that the clear functional responsibility between the federal government and state and local governments have characterized contemporary U.S. federalism-more federal responsibility for redistribution and more state and local responsibility for development, which in turn increased public policy performance. This feature has been quite substantial since 1970s. As a result, this article suggests that despite the increased complexity of the U.S. federal system, it has evolved in such an appropriate way that would increase the efficiency of federal system by dividing a clear intergovernmental responsibility on major policy platforms.

Party System Transformation in Germany

2021 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 29-36
Author(s):  
F. Basov
Keyword(s):  
Regional Differences ◽  
Party System ◽  
Significant Degree ◽  
Main Trend ◽  
System Transformation ◽  
Federal Level ◽  
Political Crises ◽  
Political Forces ◽  
Degree Of Certainty ◽  
The One

This article is devoted to the changes of the party system of Germany. In recent years, the transformation of the party system has caused several political crises. Party spectrum is pluralized and polarized in Germany. Regional differences also increase. In this situation, the German parties are in search of new dynamics. The consequence of this is that all the main parties are now factional. The system that existed in Germany for more than half a century, with the dominance of two political forces (CDU/CSU and SPD), gradually evolved into the “one and a half” party system (only CDU/CSU dominates). The question is whether evolution will continue towards simple multi-party system, or the “one and a half” party system will remain. With a significant degree of certainty, one can say that a return to a “two and a half” party system is impossible. Changes in the party-political system lead to an increase in the diversity of the composition of the coalitions ruling in Germany. German political parties should learn how to create coalitions of three political forces, also at the federal level. The main trend of the coming years for CDU, CSU and SPD will be an attempt to return to their traditional platforms. However, a full return is impossible. More frequent red-red-green coalitions can be expected, including the federal level. But, nevertheless, serious changes in the German party system did not lead to its chronic incapacity – the system adapted to them.

Lessons from the Crisis

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Tirole
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Financial Crisis ◽  
Real Estate ◽  
Consumer Protection ◽  
Financial Regulation ◽  
Financial Sector ◽  
System Reform ◽  
Financial Reforms ◽  
Mortgage Crisis ◽  
Regulatory Failure

This chapter aims to contribute to the debate on financial system reform. The first part describes what is perceived to be a massive regulatory failure, a breakdown that goes all the way from regulatory fundamentals to prudential implementation. The second part discusses some implications of recent events for financial sector regulation. It argues that to avoid a repetition of the financial crisis, we need both to change public policies that contributed to the crisis (particularly the mortgage crisis) and to institute financial reforms. Desirable reforms of public policy regarding real estate lending include promoting consumer protection and reducing subsidies. Financial regulation must also be international. The creation of supranational regulatory structures has become increasingly urgent in a world in which institutions and counterparties are truly international.

Rangplatzorientierte personalisierte Verhältniswahl ohne (oder nahezu ohne) „verwaiste Wahlkreise“

2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (4) ◽  
pp. 802-824
Author(s):  
Joachim Behnke
Keyword(s):  
Electoral Systems ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Grand Coalition ◽  
Federal Level ◽  
Electoral Law

The reform of the electoral law in 2013 introduced adjustment seats that compensate for surplus mandates, resulting in the Bundestag increasing in size . The new electoral law passed by the Grand Coalition in October 2020 will not provide an effective cure to this problem . The “usual suspects” that have been proposed as possible remedies, especially reducing the number of constituencies, but also accounting for list mandates with surplus mandates and capping “excess” direct mandates, all imply problematic effects . Against this background, forms of rank‑oriented personalized proportional electoral systems, which adhere to the logic of Baden‑Wuerttemberg’s state electoral system, seem to be promising reform perspectives . They preserve the element of the personal vote and could even strengthen this . Not only can they guarantee that the Bundestag will not exceed its regular size, but they also secure proportionality between the parties at the federal level as well as proportionality between the several state lists of one party .

Ireland: Coalition Politics in a Fragmenting Party System

2021 ◽  
pp. 357-395
Author(s):  
Paul Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Party System ◽  
Coalition Government ◽  
Limited Government ◽  
Coalition Governments ◽  
Coalition Politics ◽  
System P ◽  
Fianna Fail ◽  
The Government ◽  
Almost All

Ireland is a parliamentary democracy created as a result of a revolutionary secession from the United Kingdom. While Ireland has many institutional and administrative features that are quite similar to the Westminster model, there are also some important departures, most notably the adoption of limited government via a written constitution, and the adoption of PR-STV which has facilitated the formation of coalition governments. For most of the twentieth century (up until 1989 at least) a Fianna Fáil single-party government was the default outcome of the government-formation process, though many of these cabinets were ‘large’ minority administrations. The only method of ejecting Fianna Fáil was for the second- and third-largest parties (Fine Gael and Labour) to form a coalition government, which they did on a number of occasions. The bargaining environment permanently changed in 1989 when Fianna Fáil broke the habit of a lifetime and entered its first coalition with the Progressive Democrats. Since then almost all governments have been coalitions. This chapter examines the life cycle of coalition government in Ireland: formation, governance, and dissolution. Coalition agreements have evolved over the decades and have become much more important, detailed, and hence more lengthy. The coalition programme plays a key role in the work of the cabinet and the relations between the parties. The increasingly detailed coalition agreements are a very important commitment device during the life cycle of coalition governments. The increasing fragmentation of the party system has meant that coalition formation bargaining has become more challenging.

scholarly journals Chancellor Angela Merkel: A Celtic Satire

2006 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Middle Class ◽  
Categorical Imperative ◽  
Grand Coalition ◽  
The Real ◽  
Security Services ◽  
Political Crises ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Angela Merkel ◽  
Ancient Times

Glosses on Chancellor Angela Merkel: In ancient times the poets of Ireland and Scotland wrote satires on royals and chiefs they held to be administratively challenged and/or ungenerous to needy bards. The poems were not in strict form, but, generally, 17 line stanzas implied “should be put down”, while 13 line stanzas connoted “harmless but dim”. Walküre, whence Valkyrie, means “chooser of the slain” in Old German. In the bloodletting attending the formation of the present Grand Coalition in Germany, Edmund Stoiber was a casualty and withdrew, embittered, to lead Bavaria again. Angela is widely reported to find relief from the tensions of major political crises by baking cakes, a method more acceptable to the German middle-class than that once favoured by President Clinton. Prince Potemkin, lover and right-hand-man, of Czarina Catherine II, is – maybe slanderously – supposed to have had fake villages built in which actors mimed happy peasants as she drove past in her carriage. When Bush visited Angela’s provincial electorate, the real locals were sent somewhere else, while blokes from Germany’s security services replaced them, smiling, cheering and waving American flags. Consuming coffee and cake at 4 p.m. is the only Categorical Imperative that Germany absolutely obeys. The plot of Wagner’s Twilight of the Gods resembles a stale lamington, as do Germany’s present economic woes. The Grand Coalition is also looking crumbly and dry, despite Angela’s keeping it in the fridge in glad-wrap.

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