Party of the European Left

Party of the European Left
Partei der Europäischen Linken
Parti de la Gauche Européenne
Partito della Sinistra Europea
Partido de la Izquierda Europea
Partido da Esquerda Europeia
Κόμμα Ευρωπαϊκής Αριστεράς
Avrupa Sol Partisi
Il-Partit Ewropew tax-Xellug
President Gregor Gysi (DE)
Leader in the EP Gabriele Zimmer (DE)
Founded 8–9 May 2004;
14 years ago
Headquarters Square de Meeûs 25,
1000 Brussels, Belgium
Think tank Transform Europe[1]
Women's wing EL FEM
Ideology Democratic socialism[2]
Communism[2]
Political position Left-wing to far-left
International affiliation None
European Parliament group European United Left–Nordic Green Left
Colours      Red
European Parliament
28 / 751
European Council
1 / 28
European Lower Houses
344 / 9,874
European Upper Houses
27 / 2,714
Website
www.european-left.org

The Party of the European Left (PEL), commonly abbreviated European Left, is a European political party which operates as an association of democratic socialist[2] and communist[2] political parties in the European Union and other European countries. It was formed in January 2004 for the purposes of running in the 2004 European Parliament elections. EL was founded on 8–9 May 2004 in Rome.[3] Elected MEPs from member parties of the European Left sit in the European United Left–Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) group in the European parliament.

Several of the member and observer parties participate also in the more radical European Anti-Capitalist Left. Before the European Left was founded, most of its members already held annual meetings together as part of the New European Left Forum (NELF).[4]

Its first congress took place on 8 October 2005, in Athens, which produced the Athens Declaration of the European Left. The second congress was held 23–25 November 2007 in Prague.[5] The third congress was held on 2–5 December 2010 in Paris.[6][7][8] Its fourth congress was held on 13–15 December 2013 in Madrid.[9] Its fifth congress took place on 16–18 December 2016 in Berlin,[10] electing German lawyer and politician Gregor Gysi as the new EL President. The four Vice-Presidents are Maite Mola, Margarita Mileva, Paolo Ferrero and former EL President Pierre Laurent. Swiss Brigitte Berthouzoz serves as the new EL treasurer.

As of December 2016, the Party of the European Left gathers 27 member parties, 8 observers and 3 partners from 25 European countries.

Member parties

CountryPartyNational MPsEuropean MEPs
 AustriaCommunist Party of Austria00
 BelarusBelarusian Left Party "A Just World"[11]0
 BulgariaBulgarian Left[12]00
 Czech RepublicParty of Democratic Socialism00
 DenmarkRed-Green Alliance[13]
14 / 179
0
 EstoniaEstonian United Left Party00
 FinlandCommunist Party of Finland[14]00
Left Alliance[11]
12 / 200
1 / 13
 FranceFrench Communist Party
12 / 577
18 / 348
2 / 74
 GermanyThe Left[15]
69 / 709
7 / 96
 GreeceCoalition of the Radical Left
145 / 300
4 / 21
 HungaryWorkers' Party of Hungary 2006[11]00
 ItalyCommunist Refoundation Party0
1 / 73
 LuxembourgThe Left
2 / 60
0
 PortugalLeft Bloc
19 / 230
1 / 21
 MoldovaParty of Communists of the Republic of Moldova
21 / 101
 RomaniaSocialist Party of Romania00
 SloveniaThe Left
9 / 90
0
 SpainUnited Left
8 / 350
4 / 54
Communist Party of Spainin group of United Leftin group of United Left
United and Alternative Leftin group of United Leftin group of United Left
  SwitzerlandSwiss Party of Labour
1 / 200
 TurkeyFreedom and Solidarity Party[16]0

Observer parties

CountryPartyNational MPsEuropean MPs
 BelgiumVEGA Movement00
 CyprusProgressive Party of Working People
19 / 56
2 / 6
 Czech RepublicCommunist Party of Bohemia and Moravia
15 / 200
3 / 21
 ItalyItalian Left
3 / 630
2 / 73
 ItalyThe Other Europe0
2 / 73
 Northern CyprusNew Cyprus Party[17]0
 Northern CyprusUnited Cyprus Party[18]0
 SlovakiaCommunist Party of Slovakia00
 United KingdomLeft Unity[19]00

Partners

 Austria Der Wandel
 France Ensemble
 Hungary Left Party

As well as those of member and observer parties, individuals may also hold membership of the party.[20]

European Council

The EL has one out of the 28 heads of State or Government that attend the EL summits in preparation for the European Council:

Member State Representative Title Political party Member of the Council since Photo
 Greece
Alexis Tsipras
Prime Minister
Coalition of the Radical Left
26 January 2015

Former members

Country Party
 Belgium Communist Party (Flanders) stopped working as a Party in 2009, since December 2013 not listed as a Member
Communist Party (Wallonia) resignation decided at the party congress on 30th July 2018.[21]
 France United Left (France) merged with the French Communist Party in Fall 2015
Left Party (France) left the EL on 1st of July 2018
 Germany German Communist Party ended on 27th February 2016 the observer status.[22]
 Greece Renewing Communist Ecological Left merged to Syriza in 2003
 Hungary Hungarian Workers' Party quit 1st May 2009
 Italy Party of Italian Communists renamed in Partito Comunista d'Italia in December 2014
 Poland Young Socialists (Poland) dissolved in 2015, which meant that the "observer status" was lost

Leadership

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.europarl.europa.eu/pdf/grants/Grant_amounts_foundations%2003-2015_new%20logo.pdf
  2. 1 2 3 4 Nordsieck, Wolfram (2015). "European Union". Parties and Elections in Europe. Archived from the original on 2017-06-08. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
  3. ↑ Kate Hudson (2012). The New European Left: A Socialism for the Twenty-First Century?. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 46. ISBN 978-1-137-26511-1.
  4. ↑ "Some remarks concerning the creation of the Party of the European Left". Official European Left site. Archived from the original on 2 October 2009. Retrieved 1 July 2009.
  5. ↑ Press release of the EL Executive Board meeting in Tallinn, May 2007 Archived 1 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  6. ↑ "European Left convenes third congress in Paris". Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2010.
  7. ↑ "Executive board met in Luxembourg: Countdown to the Congress". Party of the European Left. 15 September 2010. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2010.
  8. ↑ "EL elects new President and vice-chairpersons!". Party of the European Left. 6 December 2010. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
  9. ↑ "Convention of the 4th Congress of the Party of the European Left". Party of the European Left. 12 January 2013. Archived from the original on 14 April 2013. Retrieved 2013-01-19.
  10. ↑ {{http://www.european-left.org/5th-congress-berlin-2016}}
  11. 1 2 3 Approved as a full member by the Executive Board of the PEL in Geneva in October 2009. "The EL Executive Board settles the agenda for 2010". Party of the European Left. 25 October 2009. Retrieved 2010-12-07. The decision was ratified by PEL's 3rd congress in December 2010. "EL elects new President and vice-chairpersons!". Party of the European Left. 6 October 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 7 December 2010.
  12. ↑ Approved as a full member by the Executive Board of the PEL in Luxembourg in September 2010. "Executive board met in Luxembourg: Countdown to the Congress". Party of the European Left. 15 September 2010. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2010. The decision was ratified by PEL's 3rd congress in December 2010. "EL elects new President and vice-chairpersons!". Party of the European Left. 6 October 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 7 December 2010.
  13. ↑ Approved as a full member by the Executive Board of the PEL in Barcelona in June 2010. It had an observer status before. The decision was ratified by PEL's 3rd congress in December 2010. "EL elects new President and vice-chairpersons!". Party of the European Left. 6 October 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 7 December 2010.
  14. ↑ The Communist Party of Finland changed its status from observer to full member party in October 2009. The decision was ratified by PEL's 3rd congress in December 2010. "EL elects new President and vice-chairpersons!". Party of the European Left. 6 October 2009. Archived from the original on 13 December 2010. Retrieved 7 December 2010.
  15. ↑ The Left Party.PDS was a founding party of PEL. Labour and Social Justice – The Electoral Alternative had been approved as a full member by the Executive Board of the PEL by May 2007. After the unification of the two parties in The Left (Die Linke) in June 2007, the new party became full member of the PEL
  16. ↑ Approved as a full member by the Executive Board of the PEL in May 2007. The decision was ratified by PEL's 2nd congress.
  17. ↑ Approved in observer status by the Executive Board of the PEL in Geneva in October 2009. "Welcome to four new Members!". Party of the European Left. 25 October 2009. Retrieved 2012-10-24.
  18. ↑ Approved in observer status by the Executive Board of the PEL in Luxembourg in September 2010. "Executive board met in Luxembourg: Countdown to the Congress". Party of the European Left. 15 September 2010. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2010.
  19. ↑ "We will be part of the Party of the European Left group, which includes SYRIZA in Greece and Die Linke in Germany, and calls for a radically different type of European integration." Betzien, Jody (28 April 2014). "Britain: Left Unity spokesperson on challenges in building a new party". Green Left Weekly. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  20. ↑ "EL statute, article six". european-left.org. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
  21. ↑ Pourquoi le PCB a quitté le Parti de la Gauche Européenne (PGE) — Official statement on the party website.
  22. ↑ ELP-Beobachterstatus beendet – Bericht vom 3. Tag des XXI. Parteitag der DKP. Newswebsite of the Deutschen Kommunistischen Partei (DKP).
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