Minimum winning coalitions and endogenous status quo.

I analyze a stochastic bargaining game in which a renewable surplus is divided among n ≥ 5 committee members in each of an infinite number of periods, and the division implemented in one period becomes the status quo allocation of the surplus in the ensuing period. I establish existence of equilibrium exhibiting minimum winning coalitions, assuming sufficiently mild concavity of stage preferences. The analysis highlights the role of proposal power in committee deliberations and yields a fully strategic version of McKelvey's (J Econ Theory 12:472-482, 1976; Econometrica 47:1086-1112, 1979) dictatorial agenda setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]