Left Democrats

History

The party is resulting from the Italian Communist party (NCV) founded in 1921 by Antonio Gramsci.

The Democratic party of left (PDS)

In January 1991, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and with the political transitions in the Central European country and Eastern, the party decides to give up définitvement any reference to the Communisme and changes its name into Democratic party of the left ( Partito democratico della Sinistra , PDS).

In April 1994, the party guides the alliance of Plural left " Progressistes" , which undergoes a defeat vis-a-vis the " Pole of the libertés" guided by Silvio Berlusconi. The secretary Achille Occhetto resigns following the bad results with the held European elections two months afterwards.

Olivier

In 1995, following the initiative of Romano Prodi to gather the Left with the component progressist of old the Christian Democrat, the party guided by Massimo D' Alema takes part in the foundation of Olivier, of which it will be the political main force.

Thanks to this gathering, alliances of Center-left succeed in obtaining excellent results with the regional elections of 1995 and in April 1996 the alliance, guided by Romano Prodi, gains the legislative elections. For the first time since 1948 the old Communist party is represented with the government and is affirmed like first party of the country.

The first government of Romano Prodi control surface Country until in October 1998. Meanwhile, the party is directed by the secretary Massimo D' Alema who pursues a double strategy: the party remains honest with the alliance of center-left but tries at the same time to transform itself into great force Social-démocrate by the abandonment of any bond with its communist past and the widening of the electorate towards the line. This strategy leads to the creation of the Left Democrats by the incorporation of the Mouvement of the unit Communists , resulting from the Parti the communist recasting, the Labor Fédération resulting from PSI, the social Chrétiens resulting from the Christian Democrat and the Republican left resulting from PRI. With this occasion, the name of the party is changed into Left Democrats.

In October 1998, following the communist decision of Refondation to withdraw the support with the government Prodi, Massimo D' Alema is charged to form a government in which also take part the Parti the Italian Communists (PdCI) and the democratic Union for the Republic (UDR). The reference to Olivier is suspended.

Walter Veltroni, Deputy Prime Minister of Prodi, reaches to the secretariat of the party. The currency I care chosen by the new secretary marks an opening of the party at the civil society and the movements as well as a concentration of the attention to the problems of the contemporary company.

However, the unpopularity of the governments of center-left involves a sequence of defeats at the polls and in 2000 Massimo D' Alema is constrained to give up the head of the government to the profit of the Socialist Giuliano Amato. The party leaves weakened by the failure Massimo D' Alema and gives up introducing a candidate resulting from his rows to guide the coalition of center-left.

Towards the Democratic party

The legislative elections of 2002 mark a double failure for the Left Democrats: the coalition of Olivier, reconstituted under the guide of Francesco Rutelli is demolished by the Maison of freedoms of Silvio Berlusconi. In their turn, the Left Democrats are largely exceeded by Forza Italia in the classification of the parties. In Olivier they are preceded in several districts by their ally of the center Margherita.

After his election with the town hall of Rome, Walter Veltroni gives up his functions of secretary. Its successor is Piero Fassino, a close relation of Massimo D' Alema faithful to the social democrat line and for certain aspects Libérale of the last years. The members close to Walter Veltroni prefer to gather with the minority of the party which asserts a political line more anchored to the traditional values of the left in the Correntone , represented by Giovanni Berlinguer, brother of Enrico Berlinguer the secretary of the NCV which idealized the Eurocommunisme.

The action of Piero Fassino concentrates especially on the durable political gathering of the center-left based on two subjects:

Olivier , federation enters the Left Democrats and the Marguerite, intended to become the political clout of reference on the left and to transform themselves into 2007 in Democratic party;
the Union , electoral alliance enters Olivier and of the minority left parties.

The lists of Olivier - associated with the personality of Romano Prodi - arrive at the head at the European elections of 2004, with the regional elections of 2005 and accuracy to legislative of 2006. However, the choice to present joint lists between the two parties does not achieve the unanimity, especially in the areas of the the Mezzogiorno where the differences between the two parties are marked.

Elections of 2006

In October 2005, the parties of the Union organize primary elections to designate the candidate of the coalition for the legislative elections of 2006. The Left Democrats support the candidature of Romano Prodi which collects 74,1% of the votes.

A joint list between the Left Democrats and the Marguerite with the symbol of Olivier must support the candidature of Prodi with the House of Commons. On the other hand, the candidates with the Senate are gathered in lists suitable for the party. The list of Olivier arrives first by ensuring the Union a victory of very short margin. The list of the Left Democrats to the Senate (17,2%) is preceded by that of Forza Italia. The single list presented to the House of Commons gathers more voice than the addition of the votes collected by the two lists with the Senate.

After five years spent to the opposition the Left Democrats are again the first party of the parliamentary majority. At the time of the assignment of the institutional loads and ministerial functions, the party claims its share. However, the candidature of their president Massimo D' Alema, initially with presidency of the House of Commons and in presidency of the Republic is rejected by the allies. However, they manage to make elect Giorgio Napolitano, one of the most eminent personalities of the party, with the presidency of the Republic, function which no Communist or post-Communist had ever reached before.

Democratic party

Since the relative success of the list of Olivier and the constant failure of the lists of the Left Democrats, the direction of the party supports officially fusion with the Marguerite in a Democratic party. This project meets sharp resistances in the two formations and leaves open-ended questions:

the direction : the role of the first leader of the democratic party is essential to determine its success. However, no personality except for Prodi seems today to create a broad consensus within the two parties.
the structure : The Left Democrats have a very articulated and hierarchical structure, heritage of the Communist party. Part of the Marguerite fears the risks to be absorptive de facto by the left Democrats.
the ideology : After the fall of Communism the party was deprived of its principal ideological base. However, much of members look with skepticism the fusion of a party resulting from the working class with party of a middle-class and catholic tradition.
Socialist or Democratic? the Left Democrats are among the most active members of the European Socialist party, membership which is highlighted in the symbol. Francesco Rutelli, on the other hand, founded with Francois Bayrou the European Democratic party whose Marguerite is the main force with the Union for the French Democracy (UDF). However, the creation of the party of the Left democrat by the members of the Left Democrats who want to continue to belong to the European Socialist party, could solve the difficulty.

The Unipol business

In summer 2005, the general President-director of Unipol, an insurance company controlled by a network of Co-operative S close relations of the Left Democrats, is implied in a business related to a Public offering of purchase launched by its group on the Banca Nazionale del Lavoro (BNL).

The secretary Piero Fassino publicly supported the operation and of the press agencies telephone recordings of the legal authorities of conversations published which it maintained with Giovanni Consorte.

The business raised the problems of the role of the party in the management of a network of agricultural cooperatives and consumers particularly developed in the areas traditionally managed by the party (Emilie-Romagna, Toscane, Marques and Ombrie).

Dissolution

At the time of the congress of Left Democrats (DS), from April 19th to 21st with Florence, the DS voted their dissolution to form with the centrists of left of the Marguerite a new party. Fabio Mussi, leader of a current from approximately 15% of the militants (known as it Correntone ), took note of " the political bankruptcy of the challenge born with the end of PCI" and announced a scission, that of the Left democrat; Gavino Angius also announced its departure to him.

Political positions

The Left Democrats recognize in the principles of the European Socialisme . They adhere from now on to the Internationale Socialist and the European Socialist party. Nevertheless, the " term; socialiste" is evoked only in one European or international dimension. The militants and the voters of the party feel tend to associate the term with the tradition of the Italian Socialist party (PSI) or with an abnegation of the communist past. In spite of its electoral results lowers the Left Democrats by them continue to be in the center of a network of economic actors and social very anchored in the areas where the party is dominating: The Italian General confederation of work ( Confederazione general italiana LED lavoro , CGIL) and the League of the co-operatives. The presence of this network explains at the same time pragmatism and anchoring in the territory of the party, characteristics which it shares with the British Workers party and the Parti social democrat German (SPD).

The congress of Rome of 2005

To the third congress of the Left Democrats held with the Palalottomatica in Rome, three motions were presented:

to gain, Italy which links (Fassino Motion) (79,1%): Supported by the president of the party Massimo D' Alema, the motion of the " droite" party is favorable to the bringing together of the party with the Marguerite and to the leadership of Romano Prodi.
a strong left. A great democratic alliance (Motion Mussi - Berlinguer) (14,6%): Reference of the " left of the gauche" she proposes a reinforcement of the sets of themes of the traditional left as well as a bringing together with the movements altermondialists. Motion disallows any proposal for a fusion with the Marguerite and privileges a bringing together of the left parties.
On the left, for Socialism (Salvi Motion) (4%): Motion proposes that the party privileges a reinforcement of the current structures to turn over to constitute the core of the gathering of the left.
ecology makes good in Italy and the Left (Motion ecologist) (2,4%): Favorable to the union with the Marguerite and other parties of the moderate left and proposes to work out an alternative political program founded on the ecology.

The symbol

Its symbol, in the shape of circle (as the majority of the Italian electoral symbols on which the voters notch to vote) on white zone, represents a tree with a dark green foliage and a maroon trunk, planted on a green ground clearly. The trunk is melted in the foliage with four branches. In the upper part, around the foliage, is written in red DEMOCRATICI DI SINISTRA. Close to the trunk a red rose with a green stem rests. In the lower part, in white on green bottom, PARTITO LED SOCIALISMO EUROPEO is written.

See too

Official site
Official site of the DS in the European Parliament

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