Divided Government and Legislation Process in Germany

Abstract

  Federal Republic of Germany has been governed by the unified governments only for 17 years of its 59 years history. The upper house of German legislative body (Bundesrat) has no power to dismiss the cabinet, but has a de facto veto power in the legislation process. Such setting of governing system makes it difficult to keep the unified government in Germany.
  However, the period of “certain divided government”, in which the opposition parties have a clear majority in the Bundesrat, is shorter: about 13 years. Voting behavior of a “mixed state” that has a coalition government of federal ruling parties and federal opposition parties tends to be dependent on the negotiations among the parties. Therefore, for around half of the period, Germany experienced the “uncertain divided governments”, under which neither the ruling parties nor the opposition parties could have controlled the solid majority in the Bundesrat.
  While negotiations and compromises are the basic mode under the “certain divided governments”, federal cabinets in the time of “uncertain divided government” have a room for maneuver to arrange the legislative proceedings in a unilateral manner.