The Government of Norway is a constitutional monarchy,[2] which means that it has a king and queen, but they do not have much real power.[2][3] People that are elected to power work with the monarch to govern the country.[4] The government proposes laws to the Storting, which is the parliament.[5] The prime minister leads the government.[6]
The executive power is held by the Council of State,[7] which is a cabinet led by the prime minister. The legislative power is shared between the government and the Storting.[8] The judiciary, or the system of courts, is independent from both the executive branch and the legislature.[9]
History
On 17 May 1814, Norway got its own constitution, which established a constitutional monarchy.[1][10] This meant that Norway would have a king, but his power would be limited by the constitution. The constitution also created the Storting, Norway's parliament.
In 1884, Norway introduced something called negative parliamentarism.[11] This means that the government must not be mistrusted by the Storting to stay in power. If the Storting shows a lack of confidence in the government, the government has to resign.[12]
In 1905, Norway became fully independent from Sweden and continued to develop its democratic system.[13][14]
↑ 2.02.1"The Monarchy Today". The Royal House of Norway. Retrieved 27 May 2024. Norway is a constitutional monarchy. This means that the King is formally the head of state but that his duties are mainly representative and ceremonial.
↑"Constitutional monarchy". Britannica. Retrieved 27 May 2024. The monarch may be the de facto head of state or a purely ceremonial leader.
↑"Jonas Gahr Støre". Government.no. Office of the Prime Minister. Retrieved 27 May 2024. The Prime Minister is the most senior member of the Government, responsible for coordinating and leading the work of the Government.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
↑"The Council of State". The Royal House of Norway. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2024. Decisions made by the Government as a single body are made in the Council of State.
↑"How is Norway governed?". Government.no. 25 July 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2024. power is divided between three branches: a legislative branch which is also responsible for appropriations, the Storting; an executive branch, the Government; and a judicial branch, the courts
↑"The seperation of powers". Stortinget. Retrieved 28 May 2024. Power in Norway is divided into three branches: the Storting – the legislative branch, the Government – the executive branch, the courts – the judicial branch
↑Langford, Malcolm; Berge, Beate Kathrine (20 December 2019). "Norway's Constitution in a Comparitive Perspective". Idunn. Retrieved 28 May 2024. This made the principle of majoritarianism from 1884 difficult to operationalise. The solution was negative parliamentarism.
↑Bulmer, Elliot (2017). Government Formation and Removal Mechanisms(PDF). International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance. p. 17. ISBN9789176711224. Retrieved 28 May 2024. The Constitution of Norway states that a minister must resign if Parliament passes a vote of no confidence against that minister
