Types and effects of European semi-presidentialism based on the features of dualism, party affiliation and responsibility of the executive, and the composition of legislatures

Abstract

This article explores types of European semi-presidentialism and outlines the powers of political institutions and actors and the peculiarities of relations between them in the triangle president–prime minister/cabinet–parliament. Semi-presidentialism can be embodied in the forms of both unified or divided, as well as majority or minority systems and their derivatives. Accordingly, the logics, functionality and dynamics of European semi-presidentialism depend both on constitutional norms, as well as political practice. The research also focuses on the updated and expanded taxonomy of semi-presidentialism based on the peculiarities of dualism, party affiliation, responsibility of the executive and the composition of legislatures. In particular, we argued that semi-presidentialism should be classified within the logics of the fully or partly unified majority systems, fully or partly unified minority systems, divided majority systems and divided minority systems, which provide various political implications. Keywords: semi-presidentialism, executive dualism, party affiliation, responsibility of the executive, composition of legislature, unified and divided systems, majority and minority systems