Socialist Party (Italy)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Socialist Party | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Leader | Enrico Boselli |
| Founded | 5 October 2007 |
| Headquarters | Piazza San Lorenzo in Lucina, 26 00186 Rome |
| Newspaper | none |
| Membership | unknown |
| Ideology | Social democracy, Third Way |
| Coalition | stand-alone |
| International | Socialist International |
| European party | Party of European Socialists |
| European Parliament Group | Party of European Socialists |
| Website | http://www.partitosocialista.it |
The Socialist Party (Partito Socialista, PS) is a Italian political party. The party was officially unveiled during an assembly held in Rome on 5-6 October 2007.
A number of minor parties and associations will merge in the new party:
- Italian Democratic Socialists;
- Democracy and Socialism;
- The Italian Socialists;
- Socialist Party–De Michelis;
- Socialism is Freedom;
- Association for the Rose in the Fist.
Contents |
[edit] History
A merger of all former social-democratic parties in Italy was initially proposed by Enrico Boselli during the April 2007 congress of the Italian Democratic Socialists (SDI), during which the party decided not to join the Democratic Party, asking other parties to join them in a "Socialist Constituent Assembly" (Costituente Socialista) with the aim to create a new Italian party inspired by social democracy and based on the tradition of the old Italian Socialist Party (PSI).
Some minor parties and associations, including The Italian Socialists of Bobo Craxi, Socialism is Freedom led by Rino Formica and the Association for the Rose in the Fist of Lanfranco Turci (former member of the Democrats of the Left) joined from the beginning the proposal by Enrico Boselli.
In June 2007, the New Italian Socialist Party (NPSI) split in two groups: the first, led by Stefano Caldoro, opted to stay within the House of Freedoms; the second, led by Gianni De Michelis, agreed to join the Constituent Assembly from July instead. The former retained the NPSI identity, while De Michelis' faction adopted the name Socialist Party.
The Socialist Constituent Assembly met for the first time on 14 July 2007 in Rome, and was attended also by former Democrats of the Left and then-Democratic Left members Gavino Angius (leader of Democracy and Socialism), Franco Grillini and Valdo Spini, as well as Roberto Barbieri, he himself a former DS member, Cinzia Dato, a former Liberal from Democracy is Freedom – Daisy (DL), and Luigi Angeletti, trade unionist and national secretary of the Italian Labour Union (UIL).
In September 2007 Angius, Grillini and Spini quit Democratic Left citing their opposition to build an alliance with a number of Italian far left parties and instead joined the Socialist Constituent Assembly.
For the 2008 general election, the Socialist Party stood alone, outside of any alliance with other parties.[1] In the election, the Socialist Party gained less than 1% of the vote and failed to win any seats in the Italian Parliament.
[edit] Popular support
Similarly to its predecursors, the party is rooted in the South, where its strongholds are. In the 2008 general election it won 2.0% in Calabria (2.8% for the Senate), 2.8% in Basilicata, 1.6% in Apulia and a surprising 1.8% in Umbria.
