Balance of power (parliament)

For other uses, see Balance of power.

In parliamentary politics, balance of power is a situation in which a minority government's survival depends on the cooperation of MPs who are not from the ruling party nor the official opposition. The members holding the balance of power may guarantee their support for a government by either joining it in a coalition government or a confidence and supply agreement. In return for such a commitment, such members may demand legislative or policy commitments from the party they are to support. A person or party may also hold a balance of power in a chamber without any commitment to government, in which case both the government and opposition groupings may on occasion need to negotiate for that person's or party's support.

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