Accountability: A Battleground for Legitimacy – A Case Study of Decision-Making in Germany’s Third Grand Coalition

Abstract

ABSTRACT New forms of communication, participation and coordination are challenging democratic governments. The growing public demand for throughput legitimacy is changing the way politicians and civil servants find solutions in decision-making processes. The question is whether these changes affect the legitimacy of governments and how they manage the dynamics of accountability. By using process-tracing to examine one of the most critical situations of the third Grand Coalition under Chancellor Angela Merkel this article answers the question of how governments manage legitimacy and accountability in times of internal crisis. First, the article reveals the relationship between the throughput dimension of legitimacy and accountability. Second, both concepts may be useful in understanding current challenges for governments. Third, accountability dynamics lead to institutionalised and unquestioned patterns of government decision-making. From a new-institutionalist perspective, it argues that battles for accountability lead to legitimate decisions.