Berlin is a city-state, and the Berlin Senate is Berlin’s state government. As the executive branch, the Senate is responsible for state policy and heads Berlin’s administration.
The Berlin Senate is made up of the Governing Mayor of Berlin and at most ten Senators. The House of Representatives elects the Governing Mayor, who appoints the other members of the Senate. The Governing Mayor plays a special role in the Senate. She determines the guidelines of government policy and is in charge of government business.
The Senators are responsible for different policy areas (Senate Departments), e.g., for finance, social services, education, or urban development. The members of the Senate meet to discuss political topics and draft legislation. Draft legislation must be referred to the House of Representatives (the legislative branch) so that its members can vote on it.
The government needs a majority in parliament to vote for government proposals. It is rarely the case that one political party holds the majority in parliament, and that is why the strongest party usually forms a coalition with at least one other party. At the beginning of a legislative period, the coalition partners come to an agreement on their shared goals. While negotiating this coalition agreement, the parties involved need to consider each other’s interests and make compromises.