A coalition is a group of individuals or organizations coming together with a common goal. The goals can be anything from addressing a community problem (could include drug abuse, homelessness, crime etc) to working on a legislative issue. Coalitions are usually formed from groups such as law enforcement, health professionals, school workers, parents, and concerned citizens. The goal is to increase the strength of a common effort by sharing the resources, expertise, and publicity. The coalition may also raise the public profile of its members by making it difficult for opponents to dismiss their efforts as special interests.

Coalitions can be short-term, as in an election campaign, or longer term, such as a government coalition. In the latter case, they are often referred to as “minority governments,” although the term may also be used for a government consisting of more than one party. Such coalitions are not without problems and have been the source of many political crises. They can also be difficult to manage, particularly if the parties in the coalition do not have a clear policy platform and their own supporters have different ideas about what should be done.

In addition to the problem of policy differences, coalitions may also have difficulty with parliamentary procedures such as confidence votes and budgetary control. This makes it a particular challenge to govern in a country with a multi-party system, although there are examples of coalitions at the municipal and regional level, as well as in international political bodies.