The executive power is in the emperor’s hands. He represents the empire internationally, and can declare war if defensive, and make peace as well as enter into treaties with other nations; he also appoints and receives ambassadors. For declaring offensive war the consent of the federal council must be obtained. The separate states have the privilege of sending ambassadors to the other courts; but all consuls abroad are officials of the empire and are named by the emperor.
Both the Bundesrat and the Reichstag meet in annual sessions convoked by the emperor who has the right of proroguing and dissolving the Diet; but the prorogation must not exceed 60 days, and in case of dissolution new elections must be ordered within 60 days, and the new session opened within 90 days. All laws for the regulation of the empire must, in order to pass, receive the votes of an absolute majority of the federal council and the Reichstag.
Alsace-Lorraine is represented in the Bundesrat by four commissioners (Kommissäre), without votes, who are nominated by the Statthalter (imperial lieutenant).
The fifty-eight members of the Bundesrat are nominated by the governments of the individual states for each session; while the members of the Reichstag are elected by universal suffrage and ballot for the term of five years. Every German who has completed his twenty-fifth year is prima facie entitled to the suffrage in the state within which he has resided for one year. Soldiers and those in the navy are not thus entitled, so long as they are serving under the colours. Excluded, further, are persons under tutelage, bankrupts and paupers, as also such persons who have been deprived of civil rights, during the time of such deprivation. Every German citizen who has completed his twenty-fifth year and has resided for a year in one of the federal states is eligible for election in any part of the empire, provided he has not been, as in the cases above, excluded from the right of suffrage. The secrecy of the ballot is ensured by special regulations passed on the 28th of April 1903. The voting-paper, furnished with an official stamp, must be placed in an envelope by the elector in a compartment set apart for the purpose in the polling room, and, thus enclosed, be handed by him to the presiding officer. An absolute majority of votes decides the election. If (as in the case of several candidates) an absolute majority over all the others has not been declared, a test election (Stichwahl) takes place between the two candidates who have received the greatest number of votes. In case of an equal number of votes being cast for both candidates, the decision is by lot.
The subjoined table gives the names of the various states composing the empire and the number of votes which the separate states have in the federal council. Each state may appoint as many members to the federal council as it has votes. The table also gives the number of the deputies in the Reichstag.
| States of the Empire. | No. of Members in Bundesrat. | No. of Members in Reichstag. |
| Kingdom of Prussia | 17 | 236 |
| Kingdom of Bavaria | 6 | 48 |
| Kingdom of Saxony | 4 | 23 |
| Kingdom of Württemberg | 4 | 17 |
| Grand duchy of Baden | 3 | 14 |
| Grand duchy of Hesse | 3 | 9 |
| Grand duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin | 2 | 6 |
| Grand duchy of Saxe-Weimar | 1 | 3 |
| Grand duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz | 1 | 1 |
| Grand duchy of Oldenburg | 1 | 3 |
| Duchy of Brunswick | 2 | 3 |
| Duchy of Saxe-Meiningen | 1 | 2 |
| Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg | 1 | 1 |
| Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha | 1 | 2 |
| Duchy of Anhalt | 1 | 2 |
| Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen | 1 | 1 |
| Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt | 1 | 1 |
| Principality of Waldeck | 1 | 1 |
| Principality of Reuss-Greiz | 1 | 1 |
| Principality of Reuss-Schleiz | 1 | 1 |
| Principality of Schaumburg-Lippe | 1 | 1 |
| Principality of Lippe | 1 | 1 |
| Free town of Lübeck | 1 | 1 |
| Free town of Bremen | 1 | 1 |
| Free town of Hamburg | 1 | 3 |
| Imperial territory of Alsace-Lorraine | . . | 15 |
| Total | 58 | 397 |
The Reichstag must meet at least once in each year. Since November 1906 its members have been paid (see [Payment of Members]).
The following table shows its composition after the elections of 1903 and 1907:—
| Parties. | 1903. | 1907. |
| Centre | 100 | 108 |
| Social Democrats | 81 | 43 |
| Conservatives | 51 | 60 |
| National Liberals | 49 | 57 |
| Freisinnige Volkspartei | 27 | 33 |
| Reichspartei | 19 | 22 |
| Alsatians, Guelphs and Danes | 18 | 5 |
| Poles | 16 | 20 |
| Wirtschaftliche Vereinigung (Reform Partei) | 12 | 21 |
| Freisinnige Vereinigung | 9 | 16 |
| Wilde (no party) | 9 | 5 |
| Bund der Landwirte | 3 | 6 |
| Bauernbund | 3 | 1 |
All the German states have separate representative assemblies, except Alsace-Lorraine and the two grand-duchies of Mecklenburg. The six larger states have adopted the two-chamber system, but in the composition of the houses great differences are found. The lesser states also have chambers of representatives numbering from 12 members (in Reuss-Greiz) to 48 members (in Brunswick), and in most states the different classes, as well as the cities and the rural districts, are separately represented. The free towns have legislative assemblies, numbering from 120 to 200 members.