Thomas Saalfeld – författare

In 2005, almost 700,000 immigrants acquired the citizenship of a member state of the European Union; over 600,000 became US citizens; nearly 100,000 became Australians and approximately 200,000 Canadians. 2005 was not an exceptional year. During the past decades, many advanced liberal democracies have become more ethnically diverse societies. This book breaks new ground in the analysis of the political representation of immigrants and visible minorities both theoretically and empirically. It examines the upward trend in migrant and minority representation and demonstrates that there remain crucial differences across liberal democracies in the timing of these developments; in channels of access for minority representatives, in the policy focus and outcomes of minority representation; in the nature of the connections between minority representatives and minority communities, and in the nature of their relationships with constituents at large.

Part I analyses immigrants and visible minorities as voters, who must be the starting point of any analysis of political representation. Part II deals with the stage of candidate selection within political parties, a crucial and under-researched stage in the process of political representation. Part III deals with immigrants and members of visible minorities, once elected to parliament and includes analyses of the Canadian Parliament, the German Bundestag, MPs in the United Kingdom and Members of the United States Congress. The book will of interest to students and scholars of migration and ethnicity studies and political science, especially those with an interest in political representation, democratic institutions, voting behaviour, party organisation, legislative behaviour and comparative politics.

In 2005, almost 700,000 immigrants acquired the citizenship of a member state of the European Union; over 600,000 became US citizens; nearly 100,000 became Australians and approximately 200,000 Canadians. 2005 was not an exceptional year. During the past decades, many advanced liberal democracies have become more ethnically diverse societies. This book breaks new ground in the analysis of the political representation of immigrants and visible minorities both theoretically and empirically. It examines the upward trend in migrant and minority representation and demonstrates that there remain crucial differences across liberal democracies in the timing of these developments; in channels of access for minority representatives, in the policy focus and outcomes of minority representation; in the nature of the connections between minority representatives and minority communities, and in the nature of their relationships with constituents at large.

Part I analyses immigrants and visible minorities as voters, who must be the starting point of any analysis of political representation. Part II deals with the stage of candidate selection within political parties, a crucial and under-researched stage in the process of political representation. Part III deals with immigrants and members of visible minorities, once elected to parliament and includes analyses of the Canadian Parliament, the German Bundestag, MPs in the United Kingdom and Members of the United States Congress. The book will of interest to students and scholars of migration and ethnicity studies and political science, especially those with an interest in political representation, democratic institutions, voting behaviour, party organisation, legislative behaviour and comparative politics.

The election of 2005 changed Germany’s political ‘landscape’. The combined share of the vote gained by the two major parties fell below 70 per cent, eliminating the option of a coalition between one of the two major parties (Christian Democrats and Social Democrats) with one of the smaller parties – the traditional pattern of government that had dominated German post-war politics since the late 1950s. The election resulted in the first national ‘Grand Coalition’ of the two major parties since 1969.

While some have seen this government, elected in November 2005 and headed by the Christian Democrat Angela Merkel, as the symptom of a crisis of the traditional post-war German party system, others have highlighted the opportunities it opens up for constitutional and policy reform as Merkel’s ‘Grand Coalition’ controls an overwhelming majority of the votes in both houses of the German legislature.

The German Election of 2005 analyses the road to the 2005 election and provide in-depth studies of the campaign and candidates, of voting behaviour and immediate consequences of the election, with contributions from leading experts from Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. The findings are informed by theoretical and empirical work in the comparative study of parties and elections offering a nuanced, empirically rich picture of continuity and change in German electoral politics.

The election of 2005 changed Germany’s political ‘landscape’. The combined share of the vote gained by the two major parties fell below 70 per cent, eliminating the option of a coalition between one of the two major parties (Christian Democrats and Social Democrats) with one of the smaller parties – the traditional pattern of government that had dominated German post-war politics since the late 1950s. The election resulted in the first national ‘Grand Coalition’ of the two major parties since 1969.

While some have seen this government, elected in November 2005 and headed by the Christian Democrat Angela Merkel, as the symptom of a crisis of the traditional post-war German party system, others have highlighted the opportunities it opens up for constitutional and policy reform as Merkel’s ‘Grand Coalition’ controls an overwhelming majority of the votes in both houses of the German legislature.

The German Election of 2005 analyses the road to the 2005 election and provide in-depth studies of the campaign and candidates, of voting behaviour and immediate consequences of the election, with contributions from leading experts from Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. The findings are informed by theoretical and empirical work in the comparative study of parties and elections offering a nuanced, empirically rich picture of continuity and change in German electoral politics.

Dieser Band zieht eine politikwissenschaftliche Bilanz der zweiten Amtszeit von Bundeskanzlerin Angela Merkel. In den Beiträgen ausgewiesener Experten werden die Rahmenbedingungen des Regierens zwischen 2009 und 2013 analysiert, so etwa die strategische Positionierung von Regierungs- und Oppositionsparteien, die Rolle des Bundesrates, das Koalitionsmanagement oder der Einfluss von Verbänden. Im zweiten Teil werden die wichtigsten Entscheidungen der christlich-liberalen Koalition analysiert, erklärt und bewertet. Besonderes Augenmerk widmet der Band der Eurokrise und der deutschen Reaktion auf diese Herausforderung, aber auch alle anderen relevanten Politikfelder werden unter die Lupe genommen. Die betrachteten Politikfelder reichen von der Außen- bis zur Finanzpolitik, von der Sozial- bis zur Umweltpolitik. Dabei wird die Frage beantwortet, wo die Regierung weitreichende Reformen durchsetzte und wo Stillstand vorherrschte und mit welchen Einflussfaktoren beides zu erklären ist.

Dieses Buch zieht eine umfassende politikwissenschaftliche Bilanz der Bundesregierung aus CDU/CSU und SPD von 2013 bis 2017. In Beiträgen ausgewiesener Expertinnen und Experten werden zunächst die Rahmenbedingungen des Regierens analysiert, so etwa die strategische Positionierung von Regierungs- und Oppositionsparteien, das Abstimmungsverhalten im Bundestag, die Rolle des Bundesverfassungsgerichts, das Koalitionsmanagement, der Einfluss von Verbänden oder der Medientenor. In einem zweiten Abschnitt werden zum einen die größten Herausforderungen der insgesamt dritten Großen Koalition in Deutschland diskutiert, insbesondere die Flüchtlingsproblematik, aber auch beispielsweise die Reaktionen auf die verschiedenen Krisen auf europäischer Ebene. Zum anderen werden die wichtigsten Entscheidungen in allen relevanten Politikfeldern, von der Finanz- und der Sozial- bis zur Umwelt- und Außenpolitik systematisch beschrieben, erklärt und bewertet. Dabei wird die Frage beantwortet, wo die Regierung weitreichende Reformen durchsetzte, wo Stillstand vorherrschte und mit welchen Einflussfaktoren beides zu erklären ist.