Governing in Fragmented Party Systems: Decision-Making in German State Parliaments in the Run-Up to Elections

Party system fragmentation often results in the formation of unconventional coalition governments. But what are the consequences of fractionalized and ideologically diverse coalitions for legislative decision-making? This study hypothesizes that such coalition governments face greater challenges in making legislative decisions in the run-up to elections compared to single-party governments or ideologically cohesive coalitions. The paper analyzes the timing of over 15,000 laws in German state parliaments to examine whether government fractionalization and ideological diversity hinder decision-making. The findings confirm the expectations: fractionalized and ideologically diverse governments enact fewer laws shortly before elections, as coalition parties increasingly focus on their own programmatic positions and avoid cross-party compromises. This effect is particularly pronounced in salient policy areas where ideological differences are most evident. In contrast, single-party governments and ideologically cohesive coalitions are able to enact more laws at the end of their terms, even in salient policy areas. The results underscore the impact of party system fragmentation on governance effectiveness.