The Jamaica Coalition Case-Managing Political Coalitions Through Contract

Abstract

This case study focuses on the application of the CM Model to a political negotiation and, specifically, to exploratory talks and a coalition negotiation. The case study demonstrates that, even in this context, the model delivers substantial results. It examines the attempted Jamaica coalition negotiations at the national level after the federal election in Germany on September 24, 2017. The case study highlights the complexity of such negotiations in particular during the exploratory talks but also reveals the particularities of political management, showing both similarities and differences compared with business negotiations. At the same time, it illustrates the circumstances under which the exploratory talks could have ultimately been successful, leading into a coalition negotiation, and it demonstrates which preconditions would have been necessary to ensure such a successful conclusion.