Germany: Government

Germany is a federal, parliamentary, representative, democratic republic with over 82.5 million people (2005). The German political system operates under a framework laid out in the 1949 constitutional document known as the Grundgesetz (“Basic Law”). Amendments to the Grundgesetz require a two-thirds majority of both chambers of parliament; the articles guaranteeing fundamental rights, a democratic state, and the right to resist attempts to overthrow the constitution are valid in perpetuity and cannot be amended. The Grundgesetz remained in effect, with minor amendments, after German reunification in 1990.

As a result of the second world war Germany has developed to a federal republic, characterized through two chambers: The “Bundestag” on the one hand and the “Bundesrat” on the other.

While the “Bundestag” is directly elected to form the national parliament, the “Bundesrat” represents the 16 state governments.

The Chancellor (currently Dr. Angela Merkel) is the head of government and exercises executive power and defacto head of the Government. Federal legislative power is vested the parliament called Bundestag (“Federal Diet”) and Bundesrat (“Federal Council”), a unique legislative body, that can’t be compared to any other system. The Bundestag is elected through direct elections; the members of the Bundesrat represent the governments of the 16 federal states and are members of the state cabinets, which appoint them and can remove them at any time.

The 16 Länder, shown on the adjacent map, are:

The description free state / Freistaat is merely used for historical reasons. Legally, a Freistaat is no different any other state. The usual official name is Land of […]. Each Land is represented at the federal level in the Bundesrat ("Federal Council").

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