Steven Taylor notes that the disposition of the last seat in Germany’s parliamentary elections has now been resolved, giving the Christian Democrats a 226–222 edge over the Social Democrats in the new Bundestag; as a result, it appears that Gerhard Schröder is backing off his earlier insistence on remaining chancellor, although his SPD is not conceding the party’s claim to the chancellorship just yet.

On a semi-related note, today’s OpinionJournal featured article by Michael Greve argues that Germany’s election proves that proporational representation and cooperative federalism suck. I’m personally unconvinced that either is the case—indeed, the criticisms he levies against Germany’s use of transfer payments could just as easily apply to the United States. Rather, the problems Greve sees are in my mind largely the legacy of the CDU/CSU and SPD’s corporatist policies prior to reunification, which entrenched an inefficient welfare state and inflexible labor market, which have led to the need for reforms now, and effectively marginalized mass participation in politics, giving rise to both the Greens and the far right as important electoral forces.