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A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive.[1] Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an election. A party not having majority is common under proportional representation, but not in nations with majoritarian electoral systems.[1]
There are different forms of coalition governments, minority coalitions and surplus majority coalition governments. A surplus majority coalition government controls more than the absolute majority of seats in parliament necessary to have a majority in the government, whereas minority coalition governments do not hold the majority of legislative seats.[2]
A coalition government may also be created in a time of national difficulty or crisis (for example, during wartime or economic crisis) to give a government the high degree of perceived political legitimacy or collective identity, it can also play a role in diminishing internal political strife. In such times, parties have formed all-party coalitions (national unity governments, grand coalitions).
If a coalition collapses, the Prime Minister and cabinet may be ousted by a vote of no confidence, call snap elections, form a new majority coalition, or continue as a minority government.
- ^ a b "koalicja, Encyklopedia PWN: źródło wiarygodnej i rzetelnej wiedzy". encyklopedia.pwn.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2024-06-30.
- ^ "Presidential and Parliamentary Government", Foundations of Comparative Politics, Cambridge University Press, pp. 96–109, 2020-12-31, ISBN 978-1-108-92494-8, retrieved 2024-03-13