A European political alliance is an entity operating transnationally in Europe, especially across the member states of the European Union.[note 1] European political alliances differ by their level of integration, their role, and their membership. European political alliances encompass European political parties, Political groups of the European Parliament, other party groups, as well as various entities informally referred to as "political organisations", "political movements", or "transnational parties", and sometimes erroneously as "European parties".
European political parties
editA European political party is a type of political party operating transnationally in Europe and within EU institutions. They are regulated and funded by EU Regulation 1141/2014 on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations, and their operations are supervised by the Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations (APPF), with which they are required to register.
European political parties – mostly consisting of national member parties, and few individual members – have the right to campaign during the European elections, for which they often adopt manifestos outlining their positions and ambitions.
European parties influence the decision-making process of the European Council through coordination meetings with their affiliated heads of state and government.[1] They also work closely with their members in the European Commission.
Current European political parties
editAs of October 2024[update], there are twelve European political parties registered with the APPF:[2]
Former European political parties
editThe entities below were formerly registered with the APPF.[20]
| European political party | Timeline | Politics | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Abbr. | Founded | Removed from register | Position | Ideology | European integration | Political Group | |
| Alliance of European National Movements | AENM | 2009 | 2018[21] | Far-right[22] | Ultranationalism Right-wing populism |
Hard Euroscepticism | NI | |
| Alliance for Peace and Freedom | APF | 2015 | 2018[23] | Far-right[24] | Ultranationalism,[25] Neo-fascism[26] | Hard Euroscepticism[5] | NI | |
The entities below qualified at some point for European public funding; however, they were never registered with the APPF.[27]
Political groups of the European Parliament
editThe political groups of the European Parliament are the officially recognised parliamentary groups consisting of legislators of aligned ideologies in the European Parliament. Each political group is assumed to have a set of core principles, and political groups that cannot demonstrate this may be disbanded.
A political group of the EP usually constitutes the formal parliamentary representation of one or two of the European political parties, sometimes supplemented by members from other national political parties or independent politicians. It is strictly forbidden for political groups to organise or finance political campaigns during European elections, since this is the exclusive responsibility of the parties.[33]
| Political groups and affiliated European political parties |
MEPs | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| EPP Group | Group of the European People's Party European People's Party |
188 / 720 (26%)
| |
| S&D | Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament Party of European Socialists |
136 / 720 (19%)
| |
| PfE | Patriots for Europe Patriots.eu European Christian Political Movement |
86 / 720 (12%)
| |
| ECR | European Conservatives and Reformists Group European Conservatives and Reformists Party European Christian Political Movement |
78 / 720 (11%)
| |
| Renew | Renew Europe Group Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party European Democratic Party |
77 / 720 (11%)
| |
| Greens/EFA | Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance European Green Party European Free Alliance |
53 / 720 (7%)
| |
| The Left | The Left group in the European Parliament - GUE/NGL Party of the European Left |
46 / 720 (6%)
| |
| ESN | Europe of Sovereign Nations Group Europe of Sovereign Nations |
25 / 720 (3%)
| |
| NI | Non-attached Members | 30 / 720 (4%)
| |
| Vacant | 1 / 720
| ||
Political groups of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
editThe Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) is the parliamentary arm of the Council of Europe, a 46-nation international organisation dedicated to upholding human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
The Assembly has six political groups.[34]
|
| ||
|---|---|---|
| Group | Chairman | Seats |
| Socialists, Democrats and Greens Group (SOC) | Frank Schwabe (Germany) | 153 / 612
|
| European People's Party (EPP/CD) | Davor Ivo Stier (Croatia) | 141 / 612
|
| European Conservatives Group and Democratic Alliance (EC/DA) | Ian Liddell-Grainger (United Kingdom) | 104 / 612
|
| Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) | Iulian Bulai (Romania) | 91 / 612
|
| Unified European Left Group (UEL) | Andrej Hunko (Germany) Anne Stambach-Terrenoir (France) |
33 / 612
|
| Members not belonging to any group | 71 / 612
| |
Party Groups in the Nordic Council
editThe Nordic Council is the official body for formal inter-parliamentary Nordic cooperation among the Nordic countries. Formed in 1952, it has 87 representatives from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden as well as from the autonomous areas of the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland. The representatives are members of parliament in their respective countries or areas and are elected by those parliaments.
The Nordic Council comprises the following party groups:
| Name | Abbr. | Founded | Ideology | Political Group | Nordic Council |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Centre Group | MG | 1983 | Liberalism Christian democracy Green politics (Nordic) Agrarianism |
Renew, Greens/EFA, EPP Group | 24 / 87
|
| Conservative Group | Conservatism Liberal conservatism Economic liberalism |
EPP Group | 13 / 87
| ||
| Nordic Freedom | NF | 2012 | Right-wing populism National conservatism Euroscepticism |
ECR, ID | 8 / 87
|
| Nordic Green Left Alliance | NGLA | 2004 | Democratic socialism Eco-socialism Popular socialism Socialism Environmentalism Feminism Progressivism |
GUE/NGL, Greens/EFA | 11 / 87
|
| The Social Democratic Group | S-Norden | Social democracy | S&D | 26 / 87
|
Party Groups in the Benelux Parliament
editThe Benelux Parliament (officially known as the Benelux Interparliamentary Assembly) is one of the institutions of the Benelux economic union. The Parliament was established by an agreement signed by Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg in 1955, and provides the governments with advice on economic and cross-frontier cooperation.
The Benelux Parliament comprises the following party groups:
| Name | Ideology | Political Group | Benelux Parliament |
|---|---|---|---|
| Christian Group | Christian democracy Liberal conservatism Conservatism Centrism |
EPP Group, ECR | 14 / 49
|
| Liberal Group | Liberalism Conservative liberalism Classical liberalism Social liberalism |
Renew | 11 / 49
|
| Socialists, Greens and Democrats | Social democracy Green politics Democratic socialism |
GUE/NGL, Greens/EFA, S&D | 13 / 49
|
Other political entities
editThe entities below are alliances or networks of national entities and operate across borders. Some of them refer to themselves as European parties, but they are not European political parties in the sense of Regulation 1141/2014 and never qualified for European public funding.
Organisations with Members in the European Parliament
edit| Name | Abbr. | Founded | Ideology | Political Group | Seats | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Animal Politics EU | APEU | 2014 | Animal rights Animal welfare |
The Left | 2 / 720
|
Electoral platform of animal rights parties |
| European Communist Action | ECA | 2023 | Communism Marxism–Leninism Anti-capitalism Euroscepticism Anti-imperialism |
Non-Inscrits | 2 / 720
|
Alliance of Marxist–Leninist parties, successor to the Initiative of Communist and Workers' Parties |
| European Pirate Party | PPEU | 2014 | Pirate politics Freedom of information Participatory democracy Pro-Europeanism |
Greens/EFA | 1 / 720
|
Organisation of Pirate Parties |
| Volt Europa | Volt | 2017 | European federalism Social liberalism Progressivism Pro-Europeanism |
Greens/EFA | 5 / 720
|
Organisation of pro-European and European federalist political organisations and parties using the same name and branding in all EU member states and several non-EU states |
Other currently active transnational movements and alliances
editDefunct organisations
edit- EuroNat (1997–2009): an alliance of far-right, ultranationalist political parties; involved in establishing the Identity, Tradition, Sovereignty group in the European parliament in 2007;
- The European Alliance of EU-critical Movements (TEAM, 1992–2013): an alliance of Eurosceptic or EU-critical associations, including NGOs and political parties;
- European Alliance for Freedom and Democracy (2020–2023): populist alliance; its application for registration as a European political party in 2020 was not approved.[43]
- European Anti-Capitalist Left (EACL, 2000–2012): Alliance of left-wing and anti-capitalist political parties;
- European National Front (ENF, 2004–2009): an alliance of far-right, ultranationalist political parties;
- Initiative of Communist and Workers' Parties (INITIATIVE, 2013–2023): an alliance of Marxist–Leninist parties;
- Movement for European Reform: an alliance of conservative, pro-free market and Eurosceptic parties.[44]
- Newropeans (2005–2009): a movement of citizens running on a platform of European federalism and reform;
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ Regulation 1141/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations defines a political alliance as a "structured cooperation between political parties and/or citizens"
- ^ The note of the Secretary-General of the European Parliament on the 2016 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level states that the ADDE was "under dissolution procedure since 26/04/2017" and that, "ADDE was awarded a grant for the financial year 2016 and was obliged to submit the 2016 final report by 30 June 2017. The party did not comply with this obligation." As a result, the note proposes "that the Bureau initiates the two procedures for termination of the 2016 grant decisions for the ADDE party and its affiliated foundation IDDE." With regards to the grant for 2017, the note indicates that "as a result [of the dissolution procedure], the Bureau initiated the termination procedure of the 2017 grant decision for ADDE pursuant to Article 11.9.2 (e) of the grant award decision. The Bureau confirmed on 1 November 2017 that the termination procedure shall be continued."
- ^ The note of the Secretary-General of the European Parliament on the 2017 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level states that "one party and one foundation, for which the pre-financing has not been paid, have neither cooperated with the external auditor nor submitted a final report for the financial year 2017. All attempts of the European Parliament services to contact the respective beneficiaries remained unsuccessful. It appears that the two entities ceased their activities. Considering the circumstances and the non-cooperation with the European Parliament it is proposed that the Bureau sets the final grant amount to zero." Later, it concludes that "for all 22 beneficiaries mentioned in this note (except for EUD, CVF and FP) [...] it is therefore proposed to approve the final reports." Since EUD had waived its request for a grant, this only leaves Coalition pour la vie et la famille (CVF) and its affiliated Pegasus Foundation (FP) as the "one party and one foundation" referred to above. Annex 1 of the note confirms that no pre-financing had been paid to these two entities.
- ^ The note of the Secretary-General of the European Parliament on the 2017 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level states that, "subject to dissolution procedure, the party [had] waived the 2017 grant."
- ^ The note of the Secretary-General of the European Parliament on the 2009 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level states that "an initial positive decision on the tenth applicant, the Libertas Party Limited was later suspended; consequently a grant agreement was never signed."
References
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- ^ "Registered parties". Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
- ^ Slomp, Hans (26 September 2011). Europe, A Political Profile: An American Companion to European Politics. ABC-CLIO. p. 246. ISBN 978-0-313-39182-8. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Nordsieck, Wolfram (2019). "European Union". Parties and Elections in Europe.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Demetriou, Kyriakos (2014). The European Union in Crisis : Explorations in Representation and Democratic Legitimacy. Springer. p. 46. ISBN 9783319087740.
- ^ Carolan, Ciara (10 April 2024). "Qatargate: Right-wing MEPs voted en masse against key anti-corruption measures". The Brussels Times. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
- ^ Bullens, Lara (4 June 2024). "European parliamentary elections: What a right-wing surge could mean for the EU". France 24. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
- ^ Joyner, Ella (11 June 2024). "Europe's far right won ground in the EU elections. Can they unite to wield power?". AP News. Retrieved 20 June 2024.
- ^ Alonso, Aida (8 March 2024). "The European Free Alliance sets out its key demands ahead of elections". Euronews. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
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- ^ "The Kremlin 'hosts' the European extreme right". OSW. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
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- ^ a b FitzGibbon, John; Leruth, Benjamin; Startin, Nick (2016). Euroscepticism as a Transnational and Pan-European Phenomenon : The Emergence of a New Sphere of Opposition. Routledge. p. 198. ISBN 9781317422501.
- ^ a b Whitaker, Richard; Lynch, Philip (2014). "Understanding the Formation and Actions of Eurosceptic Groups in the European Parliament: Pragmatism, Principles and Publicity". Government and Opposition. 49 (2): 232–263. doi:10.1017/gov.2013.40. hdl:2381/28315. ISSN 0017-257X. S2CID 36404558.
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- ^ To remove Alliance of European National Movements from the Register (Decision OJ C 417, 16.11.2018). Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations. 29 August 2018. p. 9-10.
- ^ Nathalie Brack; Olivier Costa (2014). How the EU Really Works. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 120. ISBN 978-1-4724-1465-6.
- ^ To remove Alliance for Peace and Freedom from the Register (Decision OJ C 417, 16.11.2018). Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations. 13 September 2018. p. 11-12.
- ^ Mützel, Daniel (27 April 2016). "European Parliament funding of neo-Nazi conference rings alarm bells". EURACTIV. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
- ^ "The Kremlin 'hosts' the European extreme right". osw.waw.pl. 25 March 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
- ^ Shaffer, Ryan (2018). "Pan-European thought in British fascism: the International Third Position and the Alliance for Peace and Freedom". Patterns of Prejudice. 52: 78–99. doi:10.1080/0031322X.2017.1417191. S2CID 148834755.
The APF was founded in 2015 as a pan-European political party that included dozens of leading fascist officials from parties throughout Europe...
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- ^ Secretary-General of the European Parliament (22 September 2017). 2016 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level (PDF) (Report). European Parliament. p. 4 & 9 – via European Party Funding Observatory.
- ^ Secretary-General of the European Parliament (30 August 2018). 2017 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level (PDF) (Report). European Parliament. p. 10 – via European Party Funding Observatory.
- ^ Secretary-General of the European Parliament (30 August 2018). 2017 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level (PDF) (Report). European Parliament. p. 5 – via European Party Funding Observatory.
- ^ Calossi, Enrico (2016). Anti-Austerity Left Parties in the European Union. Competition, Coordination, Integration. Pisa: Pisa University Press. p. 19. ISBN 978-886741-6653.
- ^ Secretary-General of the European Parliament (30 August 2010). 2009 final reports of political parties and foundations at European level (PDF) (Report). European Parliament. p. 2 – via European Party Funding Observatory.
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- ^ "Free Palestine Party".
- ^ "Applications not approved or pending | Applications for registration". Authority for European Political Parties andEuropean Political Foundations. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
- ^ "Movement for European Reform". Movement for European Reform. 2007. Archived from the original on 15 May 2008. Retrieved 27 May 2008.
External links
edit- Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations (APPF)
- European Parliament page on European political parties and foundations
- European Parliament Research Service publications on European political parties
- European Party Funding Observatory (EPFO)
- Results of the 2019 European Parliament elections by European political party
- Results of the 2024 European Parliament elections by European political party