Between the Majoritarian and the Consensual Model: The Case of Japanese Legislative Authority

This article aims to examine to what extent the legislative process in the Japanese Diet has conformed to the majoritarian or the consensual model. The author pays attention to the constitutional determinants of the functioning of both houses of the parliament and the unwritten traditions stemming from the political culture. While such factors as the lack of the government’s direct control over the scheduling of parliamentary sessions, high autonomy of parliamentary committees, bicameralism, and limited length of parliamentary sessions compelled the ruling parties to seek consensus with the opposition, the government also possessed many instruments of imposing its will on lawmakers. This article analyses the institutional, cultural, and historical reasons for this complex situation, emphasising the evolution of the legislative practices depending on the balance of power in the Diet and the degree of governmental control over the ruling party.