Federal Council (Erishlands)
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Confederal Council Bundansraduð (Erish) | |
|---|---|
| 209th year of business | |
 | |
| Leadership | |
Airik Gaißalksun, Republican since 10 December 2020 | |
Vice President | Gorla Oudlasdohter, Royalist since 3 January 2021 |
Vice President | Nzolg Erlavsun, Freedom since 3 January 2021 |
| Seats | 70 |
| Meeting place | |
| Confederal House | |
The Erish Bundansrad (Erish: Bundansraduð [ˈbʊn̪ːd̪ɐ̃s̪ˌrɔːð̞ᵿɬ], literally "the Confederal Council") is a legislative body which represents the 21 state governments of the Erishlands, as well as the federal government, in the process of federal legislation and administration. Its role is comparable to that of upper houses in other federations, although it is formally a separate body from the Reickdag. The Bundansrad meets in the Confederal House in Fzurzburg.
The Bundansrad consists of twenty-two Confederal Ministers (Erish: Bundansđignas), each of whom is a minister of a particular state government or the federal government; the federal government is represented by the Prime Minister, who presides over the Bundansrad and is a full member. Confederal Ministers serve so long as they have the confidence of their parliament's Senators, and are bound by instructions of their cabinet. Each state delegation has a vote degressively weighted by the population of their state; the federal delegation de facto only has a single vote. Other ministers of the state and federal cabinets are entitled to attend, participate, and vote in Bundansrad proceedings, with votes being cast en bloc.
Because Confederal Ministers serve with the confidence of their legislature's Senators, the balance of power in the Bundansrad is affected by the outcomes of state and federal elections. Each delegation thus represents the ruling majority of their government, due to the two-party system used for Senatorial elections at both the federal and state levels.
The Bundansrad has a strong role in federal politics, even though it is not as powerful as the Reickdag. Its consent by a roughly three-fifths majority is required for laws and delegated legislation affecting state jurisdiction, and it can block federal jurisdiction laws, as well as appoint a portion of the Confederal Constitutional Court and Federal Judicial Council, by such a majority. The qualified majority requirements, in tandem with the Bundansrad being regularly comprised of multiple parties, necessitate negotiation and compromise in the passage of legislation. The Bundansrad often serves as a forum for the federal and state governments to coordinate on policy, as most visibly seen in its biannual gathering as the Bundansdag ("Confederal Diet"), where the Prime Minister, Interior, Foreign Affairs, and Defense Ministers, and state prime ministers convene to discuss the general political direction of the Erishlands.