Multilevel Party Politics during the Grand Coalition

Abstract

As in all federal countries, party politics in Germany occurs in a multilevel setting. Parliamentary elections take place at the national level (Bund) every four years and in each of the sixteen states (Länder) every four to five years.¹As these elections are not necessarily held on the same date, German parties and voters are exposed to an almost permanent political dispute (Schmidt 2007, 212). At the same time, the electoral arenas at national and regional levels have been more closely intertwined than in most federal democracies. There are two main reasons for this fact. First, the party systems deployed in both Bund and Länder have long displayed a very high degree of congruence (Hough and Jeffery 2004, 60–65). In the 1960s and 1970s nearly all parliamentary seats at both levels were won by three statewide parties: the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU), the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the Free Democratic Party (FDP). The Greens joined them during the 1980s, while other parties remained insignificant until 1990. Second, the idiosyncratic structure of German federalism has reinforced multilevel connections within the same party system. Compared to other federal countries, the Länder have a relatively low autonomy in legislative matters, but may significantly influence the national policy-making via the Bundesrat (chapter 2). Because Bundesrat seats are filled by the respective Länder governments, they become a “major prize” for the parties winning a Land election (Hough and Jeffery 2006, 119).