Where Is the Power?

Abstract

Political power in the Federal Republic is fragmented and dispersed among a wide variety of institutions and elites. There is no single locus of power. At the national level, there are three major decision-making structures: (1) the Bundestag, the lower house of parliament; (2) the Federal Council (Bundesrat), which represents the states and is the German equivalent of an upper house; and (3) the federal government, or executive (the chancellor and cabinet). In addition, the sixteen states that constitute the Federal Republic play important roles, especially in the areas of education and internal security. These states also have a direct influence on national policymaking through the Bundesrat, which is composed of delegates from each of the states. The Federal Constitutional Court, which has the power of judicial review, has also become an increasingly powerful institution. Finally, a federal president, indirectly elected but with little independent responsibility for policy, serves as the ceremonial head of state and is expected to be a unifying or integrating figure, above the partisan political struggle.