This book analyzes the verticalization of coalition cabinets from the national to the sub-national level. Presenting case studies for countries with federal systems of government, such as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, and India, as well as those focusing on states with hybrid systems of government, such as Italy, the contributors analyze multilevel government formation processes to identify vertical congruence between national and sub-national coalitions. The book also examines various factors affecting the degree of congruence of political coalitions, such as the degree of decentralization, federalization and institutionalization of political systems, as well as cleavage structure. This book will be a valuable resource for all scholars interested in coalition politics, as well as for politicians and practitioners in government and parliament.

This book provides a detailed introduction to how the Lander (the 16 states of Germany) function not only within the country itself but also within the wider context of European political affairs. Some knowledge of the role of the Lander is essential to an understanding of the political system as well as of German federalism. This book traces the origin of the Lander. It looks at their place in the constitutional order of the country and the political and administrative system. Their organization and administration are fully covered, as is their financing. Parties and elections in the Lander and the controversial roles of parliaments and deputies are also examined.

Federalism has experienced a remarkable renaissance in recent decades – as an alternative way to accommodate ethnic differences; as a tool to combat remote, undemocratic and ineffective central governments; and lastly, as a means to promote economic performance in the developing world through decentralisation. This book seeks to bring different aspects and perspectives of federalism studies closer together, by providing an analytical framework which transcends the sub-fields and encourages contributors to look beyond the comfort zones of their own disciplinary approaches to the topic. The authors seek to achieve this aim by structuring the contributions around four dimensions federalism studies: • the development and design of federal institutions; • federalism and democratic participation, representation and accountability; • federalism and the accommodation of territorially-based ethnic, cultural and linguistic differences; • federalism and public policy. With a strong comparative framework, New Directions in Federalism Studies will be of interest to students and scholars of Federalism, Government, Regionalism, and Multi-level Governance. It will also offer insights of relevance to Comparative Politics, Public Policy, Public Administration, Nationalism, and West European Politics.

Coalition Politics and Economic Development challenges the conventional wisdom that coalition government hinders necessary policy reform in developing countries. Irfan Nooruddin presents a fresh theory that institutionalized gridlock, by reducing policy volatility and stabilizing investor expectations, is actually good for economic growth. Successful national economic performance, he argues, is the consequence of having the right configuration of national political institutions. Countries in which leaders must compromise to form policy are better able to commit credibly to investors and therefore enjoy higher and more stable rates of economic development. Quantitative analysis of business surveys and national economic data together with historical case studies of five countries provide evidence for these claims. This is an original analysis of the relationship between political institutions and national economic performance in the developing world and will appeal to scholars and advanced students of political economy, economic development and comparative politics.

In Germany, Grand Coalitions of the two major parties - the Christian Democrats (CDU/CSU) and the Social Democrats (SPD) - generally have a bad reputation. Hence, the CDU/CSU-SPD government under Angela Merkel (2005-2009) was neither the parties' nor the citizens' preferred choice, its performance was seen quite critical from the outset, and it was finished without further ado after the 2009 federal election. Has the Grand Coalition 2005-2009 been a single episode or rather a turning point for German politics? This book provides a retrospective of the first Merkel government, an analysis of the 2009 election and an account of its prospective consequences.

The theory of comparative federalism asserts that federations require a second chamber for the representation of regional interests in central law-making. Yet there has been little systematic analysis of the contribution of second chambers in parliamentary federations to this task. The main purpose of this book is to demonstrate to what extent the two strongest parliamentary second chambers, the Australian Senate and the German Bundesrat are linked to the federal structures in which they are embedded. The study analyzes the contribution of the members of these second chambers in advancing interests that are linked to the regional constituents whom they represent or to the collective fiscal or administrative interests of a regional government with whom they are associated. The analysis underscores the largely 'executive' character of intergovernmental relations in parliamentary federations, a feature that corresponds with the composition of the German Bundesrat, but not of the Australian Senate. In the concluding chapter some preliminary observations are made as to whether our findings also generate interesting insights for the larger group of parliamentary second chambers in federal or quasi-federal states, such as the Belgian, Spanish and Canadian Senates, the UK House of Lords and the Indian Raiya Sabha.

The book improves our knowledge on the impact of federalism on policy performance from a comparative point of view. Case studies of six countries - federal and unitary states - establishes the relationship between state structure (federal or unitary) and policy performance.