negative parliamentarism

alternative negative parliamentarianism

1. uncountablepolitical scienceA type of parliamentary government in which an incoming government may take office unless a parliamentary majority votes against it, rather than needing affirmative majority support at investiture.

   The most salient feature of negative parliamentarism is that the confidence relationship between the legislative and executive branches is weak.

   2025, Jonas Stein and Bjørn Erik Rasch, “Executive–Legislative Relations: Negative Parliamentarism and Its Consequences for Governing Norway”, in The Oxford Handbook of Norwegian Politics, →DOI, pages 87–101

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   More precisely, the principle of “negative parliamentarism” whereby a government cannot be formed or remain in power if a majority of Folketinget is against it.

   2023, Mikkel Flohr, “The Populist Foundations of Democracy: A Conceptual History of “the People” [Folket] in the Constitutional Struggles in Denmark, 1830–1920”, in European Journal of Sociology / Archives Européennes de Sociologie, volume 65, number 1, →DOI

   That is, while in some parliamentary systems governments may form without the active support of parliament – this is known as negative parliamentarism – no parliamentary system exists where the government can survive against the will of parliament.

   2023, Or Tuttnauer and Reuven Y. Hazan, “Government–Opposition Relations and the Vote of No-Confidence”, in Political Studies, volume 72, number 3, →DOI, pages 984–1004

   The distinction between ‘negative’ and ‘positive’ parliamentarism, introduced by Bergman, has gained a wide use in the analysis of parliamentary politics and government formation.

   2024, Tom Louwerse, “Investiture and Removal of Governments: ‘Positive’ and ‘Negative’ Parliamentarism”, in New Developments in the Study of Coalition Governments (Studies in Public Choice), volume 9, →DOI, pages 17–37