Bicameralism and Majoritarian Equilibrium
In: Public choice, Band 74, Heft 2, S. 169-179
ISSN: 0048-5829
The institution of bicameralism, as a distinct constitutional element, is examined. Bicameralism exerts a stabilizing effect on legislatures by supporting a non-empty core in majority voting games. This effect was originally established for two-dimensional policy spaces & extends to the n-dimensional case. The mechanism by which bicameralism generates a core of potentially stable equilibria is the institutionalization of opposition between mutually oriented median voters. Multicameralism may generate the same stabilizing effect, but only under conditions of substantial opposition between chambers. The linkage of this analysis of bicameralism with the standard median voter model & with more traditional analyses of bicameralism is discussed. 3 Figures, 8 References. Adapted from the source document.