Saved by the Greens?

Abstract

Abstract Since the federal election in 2021 Alliance 90/the Greens have governed in a novel “traffic-light” coalition with the Social Democrats and the Liberals. The Greens’ willingness to experiment with new coalition models has precursors on the state level, where they have exhibited a surprising coalition flexibility. This article combines models from coalition theory with insights from issue ownership and niche parties to explain this flexibility. The empirical analysis based on Wahl-O-Mat data shows that one contributing factor is the emergence of a radical challenger that reduces the perceived distances between the established parties. This is reinforced by an increasing relevance of ecological and environmental issues, which the Greens have issue ownership of and which function as a bridge over the camp divide. The article illuminates how a general shift in a multilevel party organization shapes and enables coalition strategies on the federal level.