Dualism (politics)
In politics and in constitutional law, it is called dualism when two independent forces share power in the state. The opposite is state-political monism, in which only one force has power, for example the king in an absolute monarchy. Dualism, on the other hand, is considered an element or a form of separation of powers . Dualism can be anchored in state law, for example in a constitution , but it can also result from the actual distribution of power in the state.
Constitutional monarchy
In a constitutional monarchy there is the monarchical principle according to which the monarch has state authority. However, it is limited, the monarch must adhere to the constitution and sometimes work with a representative body (parliament). The parliament itself exists based on the provisions of the constitution. “Composition and decision-making” of the popular assembly are “not derived from monarchical power”, but can only be traced back “to the popular act of election”, writes Dieter Grimm .
Historically, it was above all legislation that showed the dualism of monarch and popular representation. In most systems, a law was only passed if both the monarch and the parliament approved it. Depending on the system, depending on the historical situation, it was more likely that one side or the other succeeded in asserting itself. The concept of constitutional monarchy did not have an actual solution to the dualistic conflict: Although the monarch could have a new parliament elected, there was a risk that the electorate would still vote for a parliament that had a different opinion than the monarch. To dissolve the parliament without a new election would have been a breach of the constitution. Conversely, as a rule, the parliament did not have the right to depose the monarch.
In Germany , the constitutional monarchy remained an unstable interim solution (between the period of absolutism around 1800 and the end of monarchies in 1918). The dualism led to the political system being blocked; Robert Mohl said in 1852 that this weakness could only be overcome through corruption or the rule of the parliamentary majority. Parliament received more and more parliamentary control over budget law, while criminal law was replaced by political ministerial responsibility . The monarch no longer had its own religious or functional legitimacy; many monarchies did not come into being until the time of Napoleon.
Example Netherlands
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In the Netherlands , dualism is still an official principle of the constitutional monarchy today. Originally one meant the opposition between the monarchical government and the representative body. The latter has long since established itself as the actual body of power, and even if the king formally appoints and dismisses the ministers, a government resigns if it has lost the confidence of the people's representatives.
Anyone who calls for more dualism in the political debate would like the parliament as a whole (and not just the opposition factions) to oppose the government more. For the communal level there is also a law on dualisation, which regulates that members of the communal government are no longer allowed to belong to the communal council at the same time . But since the local council still elects the wethouders (the councilors) in the local government, the solidarity between wethoder and “his” faction is still strong.
republic
In a republic there is no monarch and therefore no monarchical principle. Popular sovereignty applies , as laid down in the German constitutions of 1919 and 1949: all power comes from the people. In the Federal Republic of Germany, the government is elected by the people's representative body, so with dualism one can only mean the difference between the government (including the parliamentary groups that support it) and the opposition.
In the presidential or semi-presidential system of government, on the other hand, there is definitely a dualism between government and parliament in that the government is directly elected by the people, or is appointed by a president who is directly elected by the people. The parliament cannot remove the government or can only remove it under exceptional circumstances. Both sides need to work together.
See also
supporting documents
- ↑ Dieter Grimm: German Constitutional History 1776-1866. From the beginning of the modern constitutional state to the dissolution of the German Confederation . Suhrkamp, Frankfurt am Main 1988, p. 140.
- ↑ Wolfgang Reinhard: History of State Power. A comparative constitutional history of Europe from the beginning to the present. 3rd edition, CH Beck, Munich 2002 (1999), pp. 429/430.