Gewaltenteilung
Germany's three branches of government and how they constrain each other. A core Leben in Deutschland topic.
Legislative
Bundestag (+ Bundesrat)
Federal lawmaking. Bundestag is directly elected; Bundesrat represents the 16 Länder.
Seat: Berlin (Reichstagsgebäude)
Size: Bundestag: typically 600 to 800 MdB (size depends on overhang/balance seats); Bundesrat: 69 seats across the Länder.
Key power: Passes federal laws, approves the budget, elects the Bundeskanzler.
Executive
Bundesregierung (Kanzler + Minister) + Bundespräsident
Carries out the laws. Bundesregierung sets policy; Bundespräsident is the largely-ceremonial head of state.
Seat: Bundeskanzleramt and ministries in Berlin (some still in Bonn)
Size: Cabinet of ~15 ministers; Bundespräsident is one person.
Key power: Day-to-day governance. The Bundeskanzler sets Richtlinienkompetenz; the Bundespräsident signs laws and represents the state.
Judicative
Bundesverfassungsgericht + Bundesgerichtshof + specialised courts
Interprets and applies the law. Bundesverfassungsgericht in Karlsruhe is the constitutional court; ordinary justice runs from Amtsgerichte up to the Bundesgerichtshof.
Seat: Karlsruhe (BVerfG and BGH)
Size: BVerfG: 16 judges in two senates; BGH: ~150 judges.
Key power: Can strike down laws (BVerfG), settle disputes between Länder and the Bund, ban parties (extremely rare).
How the German split differs from other systems
- The split is sharper than in the UK (no fused executive-legislative) but softer than in the USA (Bundesregierung ministers are usually MdB; the Bundeskanzler is elected by and accountable to the Bundestag).
- Federalism: the 16 Länder have their own parliaments, governments, and constitutional courts. Education, police, and broadcasting are Länder matters.
- The Bundesverfassungsgericht has rare but real teeth: it has blocked treaties, struck down the 2020 climate law as too weak, and shaped data-protection limits on intelligence services.