Sven T. Siefken – professor of political science; expert on parliaments, government and public administration

Coalitions | Electoral Law

No good idea: A deadline for government formation
BySTS 2026-07-142026-07-14

A fixed deadline for government formation – no good idea! Our article at Verfassungsblog compares the constitutional rules in the three states with upcoming elections this summer: Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Sachsen-Anhalt and Berlin. And discusses their potential consequences. Written with Lorenz Müller and Philipp Cartier of Gestaltungszentrale Politik. Read the text and watch the graphs here: https://verfassungsblog.de/ministerpraesidentenwahl-fristen/…

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Teaching

Dealing with the Iran war in German politics
BySTS 2026-07-062026-07-06

How does the German political system deal with the consequences of the Iran war? We discussed this topic with a group of students at the Federal University of Applied Administrative Sciences during meetings and visits to the German Bundestag, the Federal Chancellery, the Federal Intelligence Service (BND), the Federal Ministry of the Economy, the Federal…

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Expert Commissions

Current Expert Commissions and Their Consequences
BySTS 2026-06-272026-06-27

Quite a few expert commissions of the Federal government of Germany have submitted their recommendations in recent weeks. On public radio station Inforadio, Sven T. Siefken discussed their composition, the potential consequences and legitimacy of commissions. You can listen to the interview here: https://www.inforadio.de/rubriken/interviews/2026/06/27/rente-kommission-social-media-experten-rat-regierung.html

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Research | Teaching

Open House at the Federal Government
BySTS 2026-06-232026-06-23

At the day of the open door of the Federal Government, the Federal University of Applied Administrative Sciences was presenting the BA and MA programs. Details here: https://www.bmas.de/DE/Ministerium/Veranstaltungen/tag-der-offenen-tuer-2026.html and more about the University: https://hsbund.de

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Conferences | Parliaments

Protection of Free Speech in Parliament
BySTS 2026-06-172026-06-17

The German Section of the International Commission of Jurists held its annual conference at the Bundestag on the topic of protecting free speech in parliament. As a panelist on the concluding podium Sven T. Siefken commented on the developments in parliamentary discourse in recent years, and discussed with Harald Dossi (Director of the Parliament of…

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Cartography | Legislation

How Laws are Made in Germany
BySTS 2026-06-082026-06-08

The legislative process is only partly understood. It is characterized by various iterations among different groups and constitutional organs. Informal steps of coordination prepare and support the formal ones. Some of it is clearly visible and public, other parts are not. In this podcast with the Brandenburg agency for political education, I talk about our…

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Re•De•Re | Research

Of Eagles and Crosses and Ballot Boxes
BySTS 2026-06-042026-06-04

Our ongoing interdisciplinary research project is headed to reaching a next milestone – artists and designers will exhibit contributions on redesigning democratic representation at the Museum Angewandte Kunst Frankfurt. Find out more about this project here https://www.ddc.de/de/magazin/redesigning-democratic-representation.php

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Teaching

Concluding Class on “Getting Things Done in Politics”
BySTS 2026-05-082026-05-08

The 2026 course on “Getting Things Done in Politics”, taught by Sven T. Siefken and Armand Zorn at the Hertie School, concluded with a visit to and discussions at the German Bundestag. Grappling with current challenges as well as long-running demands on policy-making, the class investigated the complexities of the German political system and how…

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Research

Ministerial Practice for Digitalization and State Modernization
BySTS 2026-04-212026-06-08

Early April, I joined the Ministry of Digitalization and State Modernization for a practice and research stay. It is always instructive to observe from the inside how changes are implemented and coordinated, and what challenges persist. Curious to learn, happy to contribute! More about the ministry here https://bmds.bund.de

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Coalitions | Publications | Research

Routines of German Government Formation
BySTS 2026-04-162026-04-16

Expectations were high in 2025 that government formation would be different than in the past. Yet a detailed analysis of the coalition negotiations in 2025 shows that they were conducted mostly like before: they were not much faster, the coalition contract was not much shorter, and the rules on coalition cooperation were even more detailed….

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Advice | Teaching

Evidence-Based Policy-Making
BySTS 2026-04-132026-04-13

Our graduate class on “Getting Things Done in Politics” at the Hertie School in Berlin visited the Federal Chancellery. After a discussion with staff of the unit “citizen centred policy-making”, students took a tour of the building and visited the cabinet room – our goal: To understand how the center of the German government operates.

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Parliaments | USA

How Money, Media and Violence Prevent Change in Congress
BySTS 2026-03-172026-03-25

The Research Committee of Legislative Specialists holds the next Online Seminar on March 18. Maya Kornberg will present central findings of her new book “Stuck. How Money, Media and Violence Prevent Change in Congress”. Anne Marie Cammisa of Georgetown University will provide comments. Please register for the event here.

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Electoral Law | Re•De•Re

Voting Rights for Danes Abroad
BySTS 2026-03-172026-03-17

Voting rights for Danes living outside Denmark are restricted. They can only take part under certain conditions. In Germany, we take it for granted today that citizens abroad can participate in the Bundestag elections. Yet the current universal right her only exists since a decision by the Constitutional Court in 2012! In a recent interview…

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Cartography | Legislation | Media

Democracy on a wallpaper
BySTS 2026-02-14

How are laws really made? This morning, I talked with Deutschlandfunk Kultur, the German national public radio, about the current project Gestaltungszentrale Politik and I have been working on. The recording is available here https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/demokratie-auf-tapetenrolle-wie-gesetze-wirklich-entstehen-100.html

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Cartography | Coalitions | Research

The map of the legislative process
BySTS 2026-02-092026-02-12

Interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung: the long and winding road of the legislative process in Germany. We mapped the complex stages of negotiation, preparation and coordination that turn an idea into law. And who influences them. Currently on 5 meters of paper, soon in digital form. A joint project with Gestaltungszentrale Politik, subscribe to our newsletter…

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Coalitions | Teaching

Insights into the toolbox of government
BySTS 2026-02-062026-02-06

Peter Altmaier is the former Federal Minister of the Economy and former Head of the Federal Chancellery and has held many other posts in ministries and in parliament. During a public discussion, Altmaier gave a detailed presentation about the toolbox of practical politics and discussed a number of questions based on his long experience, among…

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Crises | Teaching

Security Policy in Germany
BySTS 2026-01-302026-01-30

What is the planning of Germany if NATO‘s mutual defense clause is invoked? This was the guiding question for a group of students during their project week excursion to Berlin. Accompanied by Sven T. Siefken, they met policy makers and practitioners at the Federal Chancellery, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Defense, the…

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Re•De•Re

World Design Capital
BySTS 2026-01-292026-03-17

Parliamentary breakfast in the Bundestag on January 29: Introducing the World Design Capital Frankfurt and our project Redesigning Democratic Representation (ReDeRe) as partner of it. Excited about so many interesting initiatives bringing design competencies to resonate with politics. More about WDC here https://wdc2026.org/ and about ReDeRe here https://redesign-democracy.hfbk.net/ University of fine Arts Hamburg Federal University…

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Parliaments | Publications

PPGs: Engines of Parliamentary Democracy
BySTS 2026-01-202026-01-20

Parliamentary Party Groups (PPGs) are the engines of parliamentary democracy. In a new article, I describe five steps to reach an enlightened understanding of their role in the political process. Find it here: Sven T. Siefken, Fraktionen im politischen Prozess. Fünf Schritte zum Verständnis des Motors der parlamentarischen Demokratie in Deutschland. In: Zeitschrift für Parlamentsfragen,…

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Coalitions | Legislation | Parliaments | Teaching

Coordinating Coalition Government – Peter Altmaier’s perspective
BySTS 2026-01-132026-02-06

A glimpse behind the curtains of power politics: Peter Altmaier, the former Federal Minister of the Economy and former Head of the Chancellery will join Sven T. Siefken at the Federal University of Applied Administrative Sciences to discuss his experience in government leadership. The event is open to the public, more details are available in…

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Expert Commissions | Media

What to expect from the numerous expert commissions
BySTS 2025-12-212025-12-21

The cover of my book on expert commissions in the political process has faded after 18 years … not the analysis. More on the advisory commissions in 2025 and what to expect from them, I discussed with Rheinische Post newspaper (here): pension reform, the debt break, child and youth protection in a digital world, de-risking…

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Expert Commissions | Media

New Commission on Pension Reform
BySTS 2025-12-18

Headlines can be misleading: In this interview with “Die Welt” newspaper, I argue that the expert commission on pension reform has a good chance for success. It will not be a “Heureka” moment, finding a new solution to make everyone happy. But it can negotiate and balance a compromise that works. Success will depend on…

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Parliaments | Teaching

Crash Course on German Democracy for CC students
BySTS 2025-12-072025-12-18

It was a memorable day in the Berlin politics, because following long political discussions, two central bills were passed by the coalition: changes to the pension system and the military draft. Students of Colorado College visited the German Bundestag. After an academic introduction to parliamentary government in Germany by Sven T. Siefken, the group had…

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Conferences | Re•De•Re

Transformation Knowledge for Democracies
BySTS 2025-12-032025-12-07

December 1 to 4, the VolkswagenStiftung assembled for a fruitful exchange its current projects that gather Transformational Knowledge on Democracies under Change. The ongoing project Redesigning Democratic Representation (Re-De-Re) is jointly led by Friedrich von Borries and Sven T. Siefken. It develops ideas, implements and tests them to improve representation. More here https://redesign-democracy.hfbk.net/ Photos: Christian Burkert…

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Cartography | Legislation

The Practice of Legislation – Workshop for Students and Civil Servants
BySTS 2025-11-112026-01-23

Coming up in January 2026: The Practice of Legislation, an event organized by Hermann Hill at the German University of Administrative Sciences in Speyer. Sven T. Siefken will present research conducted on the early stages of the legislative process, both in a formal and informal perspective. You can sign up for the event here: https://weiterbildung.uni-speyer.de/suche/veranstaltungsdetails.html?courseId=588-C-4382895

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Re•De•Re

Workshop to Reimagine Voting
BySTS 2025-10-222025-11-11

The research project “Redesigning Democratic Representation” assembles a group of designers, academics practitioners at the Hochschule für bildende Künste in Hamburg on November 3, 2025. The goal is to reimagine voting – both from a procedural and from a performative perspective. It builds on the award winners of the international design competition for the ballot…

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Coalitions | Parliaments

Building the Coalition in 2025
BySTS 2025-10-132025-10-13

It was a bumpy path to the new government in Germany after the collapse of the previous one. Established routines helped to get it done: After the Bundestag election in early 2025, it took 72 days untill the new Chancellor was in office. Over 270 politicians from all levels of Federal, state and local politics…

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Engagement | Re•De•Re

District Dialogue Drawn by Lot
BySTS 2025-09-27

Exciting district dialogue in Frankfurt: 23 inhabitants of the city, drawn by lot, discussed their experience and wishes for successful democratic representation. MP Armand Zorn joined to hear and share his perspectives. This is part of the ongoing research project „Redesigning Democratic Representation“, run jointly with Friedrich von Borries and Demokratie Innovation. More here: https://redesign-democracy.hfbk.net/

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Advice | Cartography | Legislation

Bringing Scientific Evidence into Policy-Making
BySTS 2025-09-192025-09-19

How can scientific evidence be better used for policy-making? When to bring in knowledge, whom to talk to, how to build networks to practitioners in government and parliament … and what role the media play in all this. It was a fruitful discussion in the Behavioral Insights Connect network, where Sven T. Siefken led a…

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Cartography | Engagement | Legislation

Digital Atlas for Political Processes
BySTS 2025-09-172025-09-17

Building on the cartography of legislation which has been developed in many workshops, observations and interviews over the past years, the interdisciplinary team of Gestaltungszentrale Politik and professor Sven T. Siefken will develop a digital atlas for political processes. It will show way of political engagement to the public, making them more accessible. More on…

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Advice | Expert Commissions | Media | Research

A Fall of Expert Commissions
BySTS 2025-09-162025-09-19

The new German government has planned a record number of expert commissions. Sven T. Siefken has been doing research on their various uses for many years and talked about his findings to the Spiegel magazine. There are symbolic uses, they may help settle negotiations by postponing though decisions, but they can also bring about fundamental…

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Legislation

Modernizing the Legislative Process – Perspectives and Approaches
BySTS 2025-09-012025-09-01

Many approaches are currently debated on how the legislative process can be debated, among them are classic optimization, different forms of public engagement, digitalization, the use of articial engagement, increased transparency and the use of new policy tools. In an article published in the journal “Legislation and Policy Studies”, Sven T. Siefken argues that for…

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Parliaments

Meeting with the Speaker of the National Assembly of Korea
BySTS 2025-07-172025-09-21

The Research Committee of Legislative Specialists met with the Speaker of the National Assembly of Korea, Woo Won-shik, to discuss current affairs and the role of parliament in the recent coup attempt in the country.

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Legislation

Modernizing Legislation in the Parliament of Korea
BySTS 2025-07-172025-09-21

The National Assembly Research Service of the Republic of Korea held a Workshop on modernizing legislation with a special focus on public engagement. It brought together practitioners and academics from the disciplines of law and political science. Sven T. Siefken gave the opening presentation and recommended to take a broader approach than is often applied:…

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Conferences | Parliaments | PiP

At the IPSA World Congress in Seoul
BySTS 2025-07-122025-07-16

The International Political Science Association is holding its 28th World Congress in Seoul from July 12 to 16, 2025. The Congress was opened with a keynote addressed by the President of the Republic. In the Congress, Sven T. Siefken co-organized the panels of the Research Committee of Legislative Specialist, presents the ongoing research project on…

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Coalitions | Conferences | Legislation

Compromise in a Time of Conflicts
BySTS 2025-06-212025-07-03

How can coalitions build compromise in times of conflict? In the 2025 annual conference of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Politikwissenschaft, held at the University of Freiburg, Sven T. Siefken was an invited speaker to present his current research on coordination in the policy making process, pointing at five important steps in the process: coalition negotiations,…

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Electoral Law | Re•De•Re

Winners of Designing the Ballot Box
BySTS 2025-06-06

The project “Redesigning Democratic Representation”, led by Professors Friedrich von Borries and Sven T. Siefken, held a competition for redesigning the ballot box. Over 50 submissions have arrived, providing suggestions for the ballot box itself, election notification and many other steps surrounding the electoral process. An international and interdisciplinary jury, composed of political and administrative…

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Coalitions | Legislation | Parliaments

Coordinating Coalition Conflicts in Germany
BySTS 2025-05-212025-05-22

How are conflicts within coalitions coordinated in the German policy-making process? Sven T. Siefken discussed findings from current research on the processes in the German polity, formal and informal institutions and the relevance of political actor behavior. The presentation was given in the 2025 Conference of the DAAD Centers for German and European Studies. It…

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Electoral Law

Lessons From 2025 for Electoral Reform
BySTS 2025-05-142025-05-16

Has the reformed electoral law of Germany passed the reality test in the Bundestag election 2025? Former Constitutional Court Judge Peter Müller and Professor Stephan Bröchler, Elections Commissioner for Berlin, discussed what lessons should be drawn for electoral organization and for the electoral law itself from the 2025 federal election in Germany. More here: https://www.hsbund.de/DE/00_Home/1_Buehne/Forschung_WissenschaftsForum_20250514.html

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Cartography | Coalitions | Legislation

The Legislative Process – and Foundations of Public Decision Making
BySTS 2025-05-122025-05-12

At the German University of Public Administration in Speyer, Sven T. Siefken was invited as guest speaker in the graduate lecture on the “Foundations of Public Decision Making”. He presented and discussed the many steps in the legislative process and their implications: Veto points, coordination mechanisms, oversight and engagement.

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Advice | Coalitions | Expert Commissions

Expert Commissions in the Coalition Contract
BySTS 2025-05-112025-09-17

The coalition contract of CDU, CSU and SPD includes agreements to set up 15 expert commissions, a very high number compared to previous years. On the public radio station MDR, Sven T. Siefken talked about the different uses and reasons for this particular instrument of policy advice, varying from substantial advice to symbolism. The article…

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Conferences | Re•De•Re

DIVE’25 – Design and Politics
BySTS 2025-05-092025-05-10

Design and politics Visionary minds and exciting impulses at the interface of design, politics, business and science – that’s DIVE’25. From 8 to 10 May 2025, the conference will highlight the social, economic and ecological significance of design. In his presentation, Sven T. Siefken will talk about „Design as Governing: Processes, Substances and Symbols“ (Gestaltung als…

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Coalitions

Looking Back at Government Formation 2025 – and Ahead at Governing
BySTS 2025-05-072025-05-09

The new Federal government of Germany is sworn in on May 6, 2025. In the webinar on May 8, Barbara Donovan, Professor of Political Science at Wesleyan College, Ed Turner, Associate Dean of the College of Business and Social Sciences, Aston University, and Sven T. Siefken look at the process of government formation and discuss…

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Advice | Cartography | Legislation

Checking Early Phases of Bill-Drafting
BySTS 2025-05-07

The interministerial working group on the digitalcheck held an workshop at the German Ministry of the Interior. The goal: to discuss how various checks in the legislative process can be combined and consolidated. Sven T. Siefken provided an overview of the entire legislative process and put a special focus on coalition negotiations and the intersection…

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Coalitions

How Long is Your Contract?
BySTS 2025-04-112025-04-11

How long is your contract? It was neither negotiated at turbo speed nor with a super slim result: The coalition contract 2025 is shorter than the last three but longer than most. And government formation – very likely – will take exactly the same amount of time in 2025 as it did in 2021: 73…

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Media | Parliaments | Re•De•Re

Challenges in Parliamentary Representation
BySTS 2025-03-282026-02-12

Discussing deficits, challenges and solutions in parliamentary representation by the Bundestag – with MP Hanna Steinmüller and Konstantin Kuhle. Broadcast on the German public radio station on March 28 in Deutschlandfunk Kultur and also available online https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/programm?drsearch:date=2025-03-28 – tune in! And read more here: https://doi.org/10.3224/gwp.v70i2.11 A recording is available below

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Cartography | Conferences | Legislation | Parliaments

Parliaments and the Constitution
BySTS 2025-03-272025-04-07

In a Workshop organized by the Netzwerk Organisationsverfassung, Sven T. Siefken presented the the cartography of legislation; identifying veto points, discussing the numerous veto points and the role of the Chancellery in coordination and strategic management.

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Teaching

Getting Things Done in Politics
BySTS 2025-03-252025-04-01

To make things happen and change policies, a deep understanding of the political system and the politics happening within are needed. In the spring 2025, Sven T. Siefken is co-teaching a Master class on this topic at the Hertie School, University of Governance, in Berlin. More about the university and its programs here https://www.hertie-school.org/en/

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Coalitions | Media

From Working Groups to the Main Negotiators – the Path to a New Coalition in Germany
BySTS 2025-03-252025-03-28

The coalition negotiations in Germany are moving to the next phase: From the working groups to the main negotiation group. In 2023, we analyzed changes in health policy along those steps. On March 25, Süddeutsche Zeitung picked up some of the findings and related them to the current negotiations as they are moving from the…

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Media | Parliaments

Legitimacy of Special Bundestag Sessions After the 2025 Election
BySTS 2025-03-132025-04-01

On March 13, 2025, the Bundestag gathers for a special session to hold the first reading of bills that will amend the constitution. The goal is to allow for military spending unlimited by the constitutional debt brake. On top, a special debt program of 500 billion Euro for infrastructure spending is planned. These far-ranging decisions…

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