Politics in Germany

Basic Law of 1949

• ensure that all major parties are represented– proportional representation– traditionally used in continental Europe

• ensure that only major parties are represented– avoid fragmentation in the party system of the

Weimar Republic– avoid the rise of extremist small parties

Hybrid electoral rules

• Two parts in one ballot

• One part:– single-member district– candidate with plurality of vote wins– half of Bundestag members are directly

elected in this manner

Hybrid electoral rules

• Second part:– select a party at the federal level– all second votes are aggregated nationwide– proportional representation– party lists prepared before the election

• 5-percent rule

– half of Bundestag members are elected as party representatives

ballot

• Choose one candidate from the left-hand column

• Choose one party at the federal level from the right-hand column

Political parties on the left

• Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS)– former Socialist Unity Party of East Germany

• Greens/Bundnis ‘90– Greens– environment

• Social Democratic Party– SPD– ruling coalition (SPD & Greens) 1998-2005

Political parties: center & right

• Free Democratic Party– FDP– center

• Christian Democrats– Christian Democratic Union (CDU)– Christian Social Union (CSU)

• current federal chancellor– Angela Merkel (since November 2005)

Election results 1949 - 2002

• SPD:        34.3  percent  (2002  38.5%)

• CDU:        27.8  percent  (2002  29.5%)

• CSU:          7.4  percent  (2002   9.0%)

• GRÜNE:     8.1  percent  (2002   8.6%)

• FDP:           9.8  percent  (2002   7.4%)

• Die Linke.:  8.7  percent  (2002   4.0%)

• Others:        3.9  percent  (2002   3.0%)

Federal Chancellor

• Chancellor defines government policy

• Chancellor controls the Cabinet– 14 federal department ministers– Chancellor recommends the formal

appointment or dismissal of ministers– formal policy guidelines are legally binding

• composition of Cabinet is a major issue in building a multi-party government

Coalition government

Constructive no-confidence vote

• Constructive vote of no-confidence

• Bundestag can remove a chancellor under the condition that– majority of Bundestag must agree on a

successor

• ensure continuity and initial majority support for new chancellor

• makes removal of incumbent more difficult

Constructive no-confidence vote

• succeeded only once– 1982– elected Chancellor Kohl

(CDU/CSU)– Kohl won 4 elections– replaced by Schroder (SPD)

after 1998 election

Federal Constitutional Court

• Reviews the constitutionality of legislation

• limit the decision-making power of Bundestag

• constitutional issues are brought before it– constitutional complaints files by individuals– actual court cases referred by a lower court– federal or state governments or 1/3 of

Bundestag deputies can request review of law

Chancellor

Parliament Constitutional Court

Cabinet

Political parties Interest groups

Domestic economy

Domestic culture Domestic society

U.S.

Britain France

Russia

Interest groups

• Integral part of German political process– welcomed as necessary participants

• formally involved in policy process– government contact relevant groups when

formulating new policies– formal advisory role in public administration– discussion and negotiation of policy plans

Corporatism

• Cooperation between government and interest groups

• social interests organized into organizations

• single association represent each social sector

• associations are hierarchically structured

Corporatism

• government accept associations as formal representatives

• associations may participate directly in the policy process

Peak associations

• German Federation of Trade Unions– over 8 million members– 11 unions

• Confederation of German Employers’ Associations– 80% of entrepreneurs– represents employers as negotiating partners

of the trade unions

Organized capitalism

• Unique model of combining state and market

• “social market economy”

• blur the distinction between the public and private sector