The Centrist Democrat International (CDI; , IDC) is a

political international A political international is a transnational organization of political parties having similar ideology or political orientation (e.g. liberalism, socialism, Islamism). The international works together on points of agreement to co-ordinate activ ...

inspired by the values of

Christian democracy Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics. Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo-scholasticism, as well ...

. Until 2001, it was known as the Christian Democrat International (CDI); before 1999, it was known as the Christian Democrat and People's Parties International. This earlier name is still sometimes used colloquially. It is the primary international political group dedicated to promoting

. Although it attracts parties from around the globe, its members are drawn principally from

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

. Although in recent years, the Centrist Democrat International has expanded its presence in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. This has led to the development of the IDC.Africa, the Centrist Democrat International's regional organization in Africa.

Overview

The IDC-CDI was formed in 1961 in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile (), is the capital and largest city of Chile and one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is located in the country's central valley and is the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Regi ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

, as the Christian Democrat World Union, building on the legacy of other Christian democrat internationals which were an alternative to the socialist internationals who tried to create a Christian-inspired

third way The Third Way is a predominantly centrist political position that attempts to reconcile centre-right and centre-left politics by advocating a varying synthesis of Right-wing economics, right-wing economic and Left-wing politics, left-wing so ...

. In 1999, it was renamed the Centrist Democrat International due to the participation of groups from other religions such as the Islamic

National Awakening Party The National Awakening Party (; , PKB), is an Islam-basedAl-Hamdi, Ridho. (2017). ''Moving towards a Normalised Path: Political Islam in Contemporary Indonesia''. JURNAL STUDI PEMERINTAHAN (JOURNAL OF GOVERNMENT & POLITICS). Vol. 8 No. 1, Febru ...

(PKB) of

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. The September 2001 leadership conference in Mexico City changed the organization's name to Centrist Democrat International, retaining its original CDI acronym. References to religion were not allowed in many Asian and African countries, and the IDC-CDI would not have been able to extend into Asia and Africa without a name change. The IDC-CDI's European division is the

European People's Party The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian democracy, Christian democratic, liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative, and conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other p ...

, the largest

European political party A European political party, formerly known as a political party at European levelArticle 10.4 of the 2007 Treaty on European Union states that "political parties at European level contribute to forming European political awareness" and Regul ...

. Its American equivalent is the

Christian Democrat Organization of America The Christian Democrat Organization of America (ODCA, Spanish: ; Portuguese: ) is an international organization made up of political parties, groups, and associations in North America and South America that promote the principles of Christian hum ...

. The Democratic Party of the United States maintains links with the IDC-CDI through the

National Democratic Institute The National Democratic Institute (NDI) is a non-profit American non-governmental organization whose stated mission is to "support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability". It is ...

Timeline

* December 1925: The first international gathering of

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

democratic parties takes place in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, establishing the International Secretariat of Democratic Parties of Christian Inspiration (SIPDIC). Member parties were from Belgium, Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Spain, Portugal, and Lithuania. * 1939 to 1945:

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

suspends the SIPDIC. * 23 April 1947: Political leaders from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay meet in

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

to create an international organization of Christian democratic parties. Representatives from Bolivia and Peru participate via

diplomatic correspondence Diplomatics (in American English, and in most anglophone countries), or diplomatic (in British English), is a scholarly discipline centred on the critical analysis of documents, especially historical documents. It focuses on the conventions, pr ...

. The Declaration of Montevideo establishes the Organización Demócrata Cristiana de América (ODCA), although the name is not formalized until their second meeting in July 1949. * 3 June 1947: European Christian Democrats form the Nouvelles Équipes Internationales (NEI) in Chaudfontaine, Belgium, prompted by the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

a year before restarting the SIPDIC. The NEI, open to non-Catholic parties who subscribed to the principles of

social democracy Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

, sees

European integration European integration is the process of political, legal, social, regional and economic integration of states wholly or partially in Europe, or nearby. European integration has primarily but not exclusively come about through the European Union ...

as the best way to prevent the spread of communism into western Europe and encourages exile groups from Bulgaria, Romania, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia to attend. The NEI plays a significant role in preparations for the Hague Congress and the establishment of the

European Coal and Steel Community The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was a European organization created after World War II to integrate Europe's coal and steel industries into a single common market based on the principle of supranationalism which would be governe ...

. * 26 July 1950: The Christian Democratic Union of Central Europe (CDUCE) is formed in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

to assist Christian democratic parties in exile by organizing forces in opposition to communism. By 1955, it begins working with underground operatives in the

Soviet bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...

while trying to coordinate efforts between European and Latin American Christian Democratic parties. * May and July 1956: The ODCA, NEI, and CDUCE meet for the first time in Paris at a gathering of 33 delegations from 28 countries to discuss the creation of a global Christian democratic organization. * 1960: The three regional Christian democratic organizations establish the Christian Democratic International Information and Documentation Centre (CDI-IDC) in Rome to provide political analyses for Christian democratic parties around the world. * 1961: The World Union of Christian Democrats (WUCD) is established in

. * 1982: The WUCD changes its name to the Christian Democrat International (CDI). * 1999: The CDI changes its name to the Centrist Democrat International due to the increasing membership of non-Christian political parties. Since October 2000, some have informally referred to the CDI as the Christian Democrat and People's Parties International. CDI member parties are generally members of the ODCA or the European People's Party (EPP, the successor of NEI).

Executive committee

The IDC-CDI executive committee consists of the president, secretary-general, and vice-presidents. The president is

Andrés Pastrana Arango Andrés Pastrana Arango (born 17 August 1954) is a Colombian politician who was the 30th President of Colombia from 1998 to 2002, following in the footsteps of his father, Misael Pastrana Borrero, who was president from 1970 to 1974. Early ...

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

and the Secretary-General is MEP Antonio López-Istúriz of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. Members of the executive committee are: *

(Colombia) – President * Antonio López-Istúriz (Spain) – Secretary-General *

César Maia Cesar Epitácio Maia (born June 18, 1945) is a Brazilian politician, notable for having been elected three times for mayor of Rio de Janeiro. A native of Rio, born in 1945, Maia was forced to leave Brazil in exile during the 1960s on account of ...

(Brazil) – Vice-President * Lourdes Flores Nano (Peru) – Vice-President * Mariana Gómez del Campo (Mexico) – Vice-President * Andrés Hernández (Cuba) – Vice-President *

Janez Janša Ivan Janša (; born 17 September 1958), better known as Janez Janša (), is a Slovenian politician who served three times as a prime minister of Slovenia, a position he had held from 2004 to 2008, from 2012 to 2013, and from 2020 to 2022. Since ...

(Slovenia) – Vice-President *

Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian lawyer and politician who has been the 56th prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has also led the Fidesz political party since 200 ...

(Hungary) – Vice-President *

Andrej Plenković Andrej Plenković ( ; born 8 April 1970) is a Croatian politician serving as the Prime Minister of Croatia, prime minister of Croatia since October 2016. He was previously one of eleven List of members of the European Parliament for Croatia, 201 ...

(Croatia) – Vice-President *

Elmar Brok Elmar Peter Brok (born 14 May 1946) is a German politician who was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1980 until 2019. He was the chairman of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs from 1999-2007 and from 2012-2017. He i ...

(Germany) – Vice-President * Suos Yara (Cambodia) – Vice-President *

Muhaimin Iskandar Abdul Muhaimin Iskandar (born 24 September 1966), also colloquially known as Cak Imin or Gus Imin, is an Indonesian politician, serving as a legislator, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives since 2019, and the chairman of the Nat ...

(Indonesia) – Vice-President * Juan Edgardo Angara (Philippines) – Vice-President *

Amine Gemayel Amine Pierre Gemayel (, ; born 22 January 1942) is a Lebanese politician who served as the eighth president of Lebanon from 1982 to 1988. Gemayel was born in Bikfaya to Pierre Gemayel, the founder of the Christianity in Lebanon, Christian Kat ...

(Lebanon) – Vice-President * Adalberto Costa Jr. (Angola) – Vice-President *

Anne Désirée Ouloto Anne Désirée Ouloto (born 20 April 1966) is an Ivorian politician from Rally of the Republicans The Rally of the Republicans (; abbreviated RDR) is a liberal party in Ivory Coast (). The party is the country's governing party; the party's ...

(Ivory Coast) – Vice-President * Nizar Baraka (Morocco) – Vice-President *

Pier Ferdinando Casini Pier Ferdinando Casini (; born 3 December 1955) is an Italian politician. He served as President of the Chamber of Deputies (Italy), President of the Chamber of Deputies from 2001 to 2006. Casini is the honorary president of the Centrist Democra ...

(Italy) – Honorary President *

José María Aznar José María Alfredo Aznar López (; born 25 February 1953) is a Spanish politician who was the prime minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He led the People's Party (Spain), People's Party (PP), the dominant centre-right political party in Spai ...

(Spain) – Honorary President * Ofelia Acevedo (Cuba) – Honorary Vice-President * Mario David (Portugal) – Honorary Vice-President *

Ulisses Correia e Silva José Ulisses de Pina Correia e Silva (; born 4 June 1962) is a Cape Verdean businessman and politician who has been Prime Minister of Cape Verde since 22 April 2016. He took office after his party, the Movement for Democracy, won the 20 March ...

(Cape Verde) – Vice-President ex-officio *

Manfred Weber Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has been serving as President of the European People's Party (EPP) since 2022 and as Leader of the EPP Group in the European Parliament since 2014. He has been a Member of the European ...

(Germany) – Vice-President ex officio * Riccardo Pozzi (Italy) – Treasurer

Member parties

Former members

* – Andorran Democratic Centre * –

New Centre The Centrists (, , ), known as The Centrists – New Centre ( , ) since 2018, formerly known as New Centre (, ) and European Social Liberal Party ( , ), is a centre-right political party in France formed by the members of the Union for French Dem ...

(, NC) (until 2011) * –

Justicialist Party The Justicialist Party (, ; abbr. PJ) is a major political party in Argentina, and the largest branch within Peronism. Following the 2023 presidential election, it has been the largest party in the opposition against President Javier Milei. Fo ...

(, PJ) (until 2020s) * –

Humanist Democratic Centre Humanist Democratic Centre (, CDH) was a Christian democratic and centrist French Community of Belgium, French-speaking Political parties in Belgium, political party in Belgium. The party originated in the split in 1972 of the unitary Christian So ...

* – Christian Democratic Union * –

Pro Patria Union The Pro Patria Union (, meaning literally Fatherland Union) was a national-conservative political party in Estonia. The party was founded on 2 December 1995 from a merger of the Estonian National Independence Party and the Pro Patria National Co ...

* –

Union for a Popular Movement The Union for a Popular Movement ( ; UMP ) was a Liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative List of political parties in France, political party in France, largely inspired by the Gaullism, Gaullist tradition. During its existence, the UMP was o ...

* –

Hungarian Democratic Forum The Hungarian Democratic Forum (, , MDF) was a centre-right political party in Hungary. It had a Hungarian nationalist, national-conservative, Christian-democratic ideology. The party was represented continuously in the National Assembly from t ...

* –

Union of Democrats for Europe The Union of Democrats for Europe (, UDEUR), also known as UDEUR Populars (''Popolari UDEUR''), was a minor centrist, Christian-democratic political party in Italy. Led by Clemente Mastella, minister of Labour in Berlusconi I Cabinet (1994–19 ...

* – Conservative Party * –

Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – People's Party Internal may refer to: *Internality as a concept in behavioural economics *Neijia, internal styles of Chinese martial arts *Neigong or "internal skills", a type of exercise in meditation associated with Daoism * ''Internal'' (album) by Safia, 2016 ...

* –

Panameñista Party The Panameñista Party is a nationalist political party in Panama. It was the third largest party by number of adherents with 256,138 members (as of February 2016). Founding and early history The party is the oldest continuously operating pa ...

* –

Slovak Democratic and Christian Union – Democratic Party The Slovak Democratic and Christian Union – Democratic Party (, SDKÚ-DS) is a liberal-conservative, Christian-democratic political party in Slovakia. The SDKÚ-DS was a member of the Centrist Democrat International and was a member of the Eur ...

* –

Democratic Union of Catalonia The Democratic Union of Catalonia (; , UDC), frequently shortened as Union (; ), was a regionalist, Christian-democratic political party in the Catalonia region of Spain existing between 1931 and 2017. Together with Democratic Convergence of C ...

* –

Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland (, CVP), also called the Christian Democratic Party (, PDC), Democratic People's Party (, PPD) and Swiss Christian Democratic Party (, PCD), was a Christian democracy, Christian democratic Li ...

* –

Batkivshchyna The All-Ukrainian Union "Fatherland" (), referred to as Batkivshchyna (), is a political party in Ukraine led by People's Deputy of Ukraine, former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. As the core party of the former Yulia Tymoshenko B ...

Observer parties

The IDC-CDI has 21 observers, including: * –

Heritage Heritage may refer to: History and society * A heritage asset A heritage asset is an item which has value because of its contribution to a nation's society, knowledge and/or culture. Such items are usually physical assets, but some countries also ...

() * –

New Azerbaijan Party The New Azerbaijan Party (, YAP) is the ruling political party in Azerbaijan, founded on 21 November 1992 under the leadership of Heydar Aliyev. After his election as President of Azerbaijan on 3 October 1993, and the party's victory at 1995 parl ...

(, YAP) * –

Belarusian Christian Democracy The Belarusian Christian Democracy (; ; BCD or BKhD) is a Christian-democratic political party in Belarus, established in 2005, which claims to be the continuation of a identically named movement, which existed at the beginning of the 20th cent ...

(, BKhD) * -

BPF Party The BPF Party (; ) is a banned political party in Belarus. It was ''de facto'' established after the split of the social movement Belarusian Popular Front ( abbr. BPF; , ) in 1999. The Belarusian Popular Front was founded during the Perestroika ...

(Belarusian: Партыя БНФ) * -

Christian Democratic Party (Bolivia) The Christian Democratic Party (, PDC) is an ultraconservative Ultraconservatism refers to extreme conservative views in politics or religious practice. In modern politics, ''ultraconservative'' usually refers to conservatives of the far-rig ...

(Spanish: ''Partido Demócrata Cristiano'', PDC) * -

Bonaire Patriotic Union The Bonaire Patriotic Union (, UPB; ) is a Dutch local political party in the special municipality of Bonaire. History In the 2002 Netherlands Antilles general election, the party won 3.6% of the popular vote and two out of 22 seats. In the 20 ...

(Papiamentu: ''Union Patriótiko Boneriano'', UPB; Dutch: ''Patriottische Unie van Bonaire'') * –

Brazilian Social Democracy Party The Brazilian Social Democracy Party (, PSDB), also known as the Brazilian Social Democratic Party or the Party of Brazilian Social Democracy,. is a Centre-right politics, centre-right political party in Brazil. As the formerly third largest p ...

(, PSDB) * -

Social Christian Unity Party The Social Christian Unity Party () is a centre-right political party in Costa Rica. PUSC considers itself a Christian-democratic party and, as such, is a member of the Christian Democrat Organization of America (ODCA). It was founded in 1983 by ...

(Spanish: ''Partido Unidad Social Cristiana, PUSC'') * – Popular Union of Equatorial Guinea (, PUP) * –

Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea The Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea (, abbreviated PDGE) is the ruling political party in Equatorial Guinea. It was established by President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo on 11 October 1987. Prior to 1991, the PDGE was the sole legal pol ...

(, PDGE) * -

Christian Democratic Party of Honduras The Christian Democratic Party of Honduras (Spanish: ''Partido Demócrata Cristiano de Honduras),'' known by the abbreviation DC, is a political party in Honduras. At the legislative elections, held on 25 November 2001, DC won 3.7% of the popular ...

(Spanish: ''Partido Demócrata Cristiano de Honduras'', PDC) * –

National Party of Honduras The National Party of Honduras (PNH; ) is a conservative political party in Honduras founded on 27 February 1902, by Manuel Bonilla Chirinos. Historically it has been one of the two most influential parties in the country. The party's platform ...

(, PNH) * -

Democratic League of Kosovo The Democratic League of Kosovo (, LDK) is the oldest and one of the largest list of political parties in Kosovo, political parties in Kosovo. History During the late 1980s, nationalism was on the rise throughout the Socialist Federal Republi ...

(Albanian: ''Lidhja Demokratike e Kosovës,'' LDK) * -

Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats The Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats (, TS–LKD), also colloquially known as the Conservatives (), is a centre-right political party in Lithuania. It has 18,000 members and 28 of 141 seats in the Seimas. Its current leader ...

(Lithuanian: ''Tėvynės sąjunga – Lietuvos krikščionys demokratai,'' TS-LKD) * -

Republican Party for Democracy and Renewal The Republican Party for Democracy and Renewal (; , PRDR) was a political party in Mauritania. Formerly known as the Democratic and Social Republican Party, (, PRDS) the party changed its identity and adjusted its political stance after the 200 ...

(French: ''Parti républicain démocratique et social,'' PRDS) * –

Mozambican National Resistance RENAMO (from the Portuguese , ) is a Mozambican political party and militant group. The party was founded with the active sponsorship of the Rhodesian Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) in May 1977 from anti-communist dissidents opposed ...

(, RENAMO) * –

Christian Democratic Movement The Christian Democratic Movement (, KDH) is a Christian democratic political party in Slovakia that is a member of the European People's Party (EPP) and an observer of the Centrist Democrat International The Centrist Democrat International ...

(, KDH) * -

United National Congress The United National Congress ( UNC or UNCTT) is one of two major political parties in Trinidad and Tobago. The UNC is a Centre-left politics, centre-left party. It was founded in 1989 by Basdeo Panday, a Trinidadian lawyer, economist, trade unio ...

* -

Democratic Party (Uganda) The Democratic Party (; DP) is a moderate conservative political party in Uganda led by Norbert Mao. The DP was led by Paul Ssemogerere (politician), Paul Ssemogerere for 25 years until his retirement in November 2005. John Ssebaana Kizito repl ...

(Swahili: ''Chama cha Kidemokrasia,'' DP) * -

Christian Democratic Party of Uruguay The Christian Democratic Party of Uruguay () is an Uruguayan political party. The party adheres to Christian democracy and social democracy, and sits on the centre-left of the left-right political spectrum. History The party was established in ...

(Spanish: ''Partido Demócrata Cristiano del Uruguay'') * - Partido Nacional

Notes

External links

Centrist Democrat International
{{Authority control Christian democratic parties Christian political organizations Political internationals Political organizations established in 1961