Coalition Management and Governance Outcomes in Multiparty Presidential Regimes

Minority presidents in multiparty systems exert significant influence over progovernment alliances. Key coalitional characteristics include the absolute size of the legislative support base, the extent of ideological heterogeneity tolerated within the coalition and the degree of proportionality in portfolio allocation. Within-case research has shown that manipulation of these characteristics by the formateur can strongly shape national politics, yet to date, there has been no cross-national research to determine whether patterns of coalition management affect macropolitical outcomes in comparative perspective. Examining both horizontal accountability and the provision of public goods in government spending, we find that the strongest coalition-level predictor of these outcomes is cabinet proportionality.