Government, Legislature

The federal parliament consists of the Bundestag and the Bundesrat. The Bundestag is popularly elected at intervals of no more than four years. All citizens who are 18 years of age or older may vote. The electoral law is complex: Of the members of the Bundestag (the number varies but is usually about 670), one-half are elected by pluralities from single-member districts, geographical areas that each have one representative. The rest are elected by a proportional system, in which the ballots name only parties, not candidates. A party must receive a minimum of 5 percent of the national popular vote for representation. The final distribution of each party’s seats in the Bundestag is also adjusted in proportion to the total popular vote. Regional or minority parties that succeed in winning pluralities in at least three electoral districts are exempt from the 5 percent minimum. The Bundestag is organized into topical legislative committees, such as for foreign affairs and for agriculture. The committees discuss and modify appropriate bills, but nearly all bills originate with the chancellor’s cabinet.

The 69-member Bundesrat is appointed by the 16 state governments. Representation is determined by population, with each state having no less than three and no more than six seats. The four largest states each have six-member delegations; the four smallest states—Saarland, Hamburg, Bremen, and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern—each have three-member delegations; and all the other states have four seats each. This ratio actually favors the smaller and smallest states because it gives them a veto over any action that requires a two-thirds majority, such as constitutional amendments. Each state delegation must vote as a block and according to the instructions of its state government. In its legislative role, the Bundesrat has only a suspensive veto (whereby it can delay but not actually prevent the passage of bills approved by the Bundestag) over most legislation. The exception to this is bills that deal with the administrative responsibilities of the state governments, which are the more important bills before parliament. On these, the Bundesrat has a veto, which cannot be overridden.