ABSTRACT
The political system of Germany is characterised by a combination of parliamentary structures and negotiating systems. The web of connections characterising the decision-making processes of the so-called ‘negotiating state’ leads to a loss of ‘inner sovereignty’ while the media enforces the concentration on the Federal Chancellor as the main actor on the political stage. By comparing Gerhard Schröder's and Helmut Kohl's styles of governance, the author identifies seven possibilities for Federal Chancellors to place themselves in a better position to increase their formal and informal power resources.
