Election of the Federal Chancellor
Immediately after the election to the Bundestag, and long before the Bundestag's constituent meeting, negotiations begin on the formation of a new government. Generally, they take the form of coalition talks as it is rare for one party to gain an absolute majority. The parties set up special delegations to conduct these talks, the aim of which is to find a parliamentary majority for a programme of political action over the electoral term and to agree on the distribution of government departments between the partners in the coalition.
The Federal President is kept up to date by the chief negotiators on progress in forming a new government. He must be informed in good time of the final outcome as, in accordance with Article 63 of the Basic Law, he has the task of proposing a candidate for election as Federal Chancellor to the Bundestag.
Until now, all the candidates put forward by the Federal President have been elected. Were this not to be the case, a complicated procedure set out in Article 63, paragraphs (3) and (4) of the Basic Law, and providing for several ballots, would have to be applied. Were no candidate to gain a majority in these ballots, the Federal President would have the power to dissolve the Bundestag.
This shows how central the election of the Federal Chancellor is to the functioning of the parliamentary system.
In accordance with the Basic Law and the Rules of Procedure, the Federal Chancellor is elected by secret ballot without prior debate. To be elected, the candidate must obtain the votes of the majority of the Members of the Bundestag. The person elected is then appointed by the Federal President and sworn in before the Bundestag on the same day.
Since the coalition parties agree well before the election of the Federal Chancellor on the composition of the Federal Government (the Cabinet), the Federal Chancellor is generally able on the same day as his election to propose a list of ministers to the Federal President. The ministers are then appointed by the Federal President and sworn in before the Bundestag.
Traditionally, the Federal Chancellor delivers a government policy statement during the next plenary sitting (there is no regulation on this point) in which he presents the broad outlines of the new government's programme. His statement is followed by the first major debate in the new Bundestag, which generally lasts several days. With this debate, the political work of the new Bundestag begins.
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