The European People's Party (EPP) is a
European political party with
Christian-democratic
Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism.
It was conceived as a combination of modern democratic ...
,
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
,
and
liberal-conservative
Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...
member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Christian-democratic parties in 1976, it has since broadened its membership to include
liberal-conservative
Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...
parties and parties with other
centre-right
Centre-right politics lean to the right of the political spectrum, but are closer to the centre. From the 1780s to the 1880s, there was a shift in the Western world of social class structure and the economy, moving away from the nobility and ...
political perspectives.
On 31 May 2022, the party elected as its President
Manfred Weber
Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has served 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 Parl ...
, who was also EPP's ''
Spitzenkandidat'' in 2019.
The EPP has been the largest party in the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
since 1999 and in the
European Council since 2002. It is also the largest party in the current
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
. The
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding suc ...
and the
President of the European Parliament
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...
Roberta Metsola
Roberta Metsola (; née Tedesco Triccas; born 18 January 1979) is a Maltese politician serving as President of the European Parliament since January 2022.
Metsola was first elected to as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) in 2013, and be ...
are from the EPP. Many of the
founding fathers of the European Union
The founding fathers of the European Union are men who are considered to be major contributors to European unity and the development of what is now the European Union. The number and list of the founding fathers of the EU varies depending on the ...
were also from parties that later formed the EPP. Outside the EU the party also controls a majority in the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
The 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 is made up ...
.
The EPP includes major centre-right parties such as the
CDU/CSU
CDU/CSU, unofficially the Union parties (german: Unionsparteien, ) or the Union, is a centre-right Christian-democratic political alliance of two political parties in Germany: the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU) and the Christian Soc ...
of Germany,
The Republicans of France,
CD&V of Belgium,
PNL of Romania,
Fine Gael
Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil ...
of Ireland,
National Coalition Party
sv, Samlingspartiet
, leader1_title = Chairman
, leader1_name = Petteri Orpo
, leader2_title = Deputy chairs
, leader2_name = Antti HäkkänenElina ValtonenAnna-Kaisa Ikonen
, merger = Finnish Party, Young Finn ...
of Finland,
New Democracy
New Democracy, or the New Democratic Revolution, is a concept based on Mao Zedong's Bloc of Four Social Classes theory in post-revolutionary China which argued originally that democracy in China would take a path that was decisively distinc ...
of Greece,
Forza Italia of Italy, the
People's Party (PP) of Spain, the
Civic Platform
Civic Platform ( pl, Platforma Obywatelska, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a political party in Poland. It is currently led by Donald Tusk.
It ...
of Poland and the
Social Democratic Party
The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology.
Active parties
Fo ...
of Portugal.
History
According to its website, the EPP is "the family of the political centre-right, whose roots run deep in the history and civilisation of the European continent, and
hich
Ij ( fa, ايج, also Romanized as Īj; also known as Hich and Īch) is a village in Golabar Rural District, in the Central District of Ijrud County, Zanjan Province, Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also ...
has pioneered the European project from its inception".
The EPP was founded in Luxembourg on 8 July 1976 on the initiative of
Jean Seitlinger;
Leo Tindemans
Leonard Clemence "Leo" Tindemans (; 16 April 1922 – 26 December 2014) was a Belgian politician. He served as the prime minister of Belgium serving from 25 April 1974 until he resigned as minister on 20 October 1978. He was a member of the Chr ...
, then
Prime Minister of Belgium, who became the first President of the EPP; and
Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Achiel Emma Martens (; 19 April 1936 – 9 October 2013) was a Belgian politician who served as prime minister of Belgium from 1979 to 1981 and from 1981 to 1992. A member of the Flemish Christian People's Party, during his premiership ...
, who later became both President of the EPP and Prime Minister of Belgium. It had been preceded by the ''Secretariat International des partis démocratiques d'inspiration chrétienne'', founded in 1925,
the ''
Nouvelles Equipes Internationales'', founded in 1946
(or 1948),
["On the Road Towards Transnational Party Cooperation in Europe" by Steven van Hecke](_blank)
in "European View", Volume 3, 2006, from th
Centre for European Studies
and the European Union of
Christian Democrats
__NOTOC__
Christian democratic parties are political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social ...
, founded in 1965.
In the late 1990s, the Finnish politician
Sauli Niinistö negotiated the merger of the
European Democrat Union
The European Democrat Union (EDU) is one of the three European wings of the International Democrat Union, along with the European People's Party (EPP) and the Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE). Its members include Christia ...
(EDU), of which he was president, into the EPP. In October 2002 the EDU ceased its activities after being formally absorbed by the EPP at a special event in Estoril, Portugal. In recognition of his efforts, Niinistö was elected Honorary President of the EPP the same year.
The EPP has had seven Presidents:
Platform and manifesto
Political manifesto and platform
During its Congress in Bucharest in 2012, the EPP updated its political platform after 20 years (since its Congress in Athens in 1992) and approved a
political manifesto
A manifesto is a published declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party or government. A manifesto usually accepts a previously published opinion or public consensus or promotes a ...
in which it summarised its main values and policies.
The manifesto highlights:
* Freedom as a central human right, coupled with responsibility
* Respect for traditions and associations
* Solidarity to help those in need, who in turn should also make an effort to improve their situation
* Ensuring solid public finances
* Preserving a healthy environment
*
Subsidiarity
* Pluralist democracy and a
social market economy
The social market economy (SOME; german: soziale Marktwirtschaft), also called Rhine capitalism, Rhine-Alpine capitalism, the Rhenish model, and social capitalism, is a socioeconomic model combining a free-market capitalist economic system alon ...
The manifesto also describes the EPP's priorities for the EU, including:
* European Political Union
* Direct election of the
President of the European Commission
* Completion of the
European Single Market
* Promotion of the family, improvements in education and health
* Strengthening of the common immigration and asylum policy, and integrating immigrants
* Continuation of enlargement of the EU, enhancement of the
European Neighbourhood Policy
The European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) is a foreign relations instrument of the European Union (EU) which seeks to tie those countries to the east and south of the European territory of the EU to the Union. These countries, primarily developing ...
and special relationship frameworks for countries that cannot, or do not want to, join the EU
* Defining a truly common
EU energy policy
* Strengthening European political parties
Electoral manifesto
As a central part of its campaign for the
European elections in 2009, the EPP approved its election manifesto at its Congress in Warsaw in April that year. The manifesto called for:
[EPP Manifesto – European Elections 2009](_blank)
/ref>
* Creation of new jobs, continuing reforms and investment in education, lifelong learning, and employment to create opportunities for everyone.
*Avoidance of protectionism, and coordination of fiscal and monetary policies.
*Increased transparency and surveillance in financial markets.
*Making Europe the market leader in green technology
Environmental technology (envirotech) or green technology (greentech), also known as ''clean technology'' (''cleantech''), is the application of one or more of environmental science, green chemistry, environmental monitoring and electronic devic ...
.
*Increasing the share of renewable energy to at least 20 percent of the energy mix by 2020.
*Family-friendly flexibility for working parents, better child care and housing, family-friendly fiscal policies, encouragement of parental leave.
*A new strategy to attract skilled workers from the rest of the world to make Europe's economy more competitive, more dynamic and more knowledge-driven.
The Fidesz crisis
Concerns that the Hungarian ruling party Fidesz
Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; hu, Fidesz – Magyar Polgári Szövetség) is a right-wing populist and national-conservative political party in Hungary, led by Viktor Orbán.
It was formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young ...
and its leader Viktor Orbán
Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between ...
were undermining the rule of law in Hungary caused a split in the EPP in the run-up of the 2019 European Parliament election
The 2019 European Parliament election was held between 23 and 26 May 2019, the ninth parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979. A total of 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) represent more than 512 million peop ...
. On one hand, the EPP had been reluctant for years to address Fidesz's stance against the rule of law, expressed by the Article 7 proceedings of the European Parliament. On the other hand, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker
Jean-Claude Juncker (; born 9 December 1954) is a Luxembourgish politician who served as the 21st Prime Minister of Luxembourg from 1995 to 2013 and 12th President of the European Commission from 2014 to 2019. He also served as Finance Minister ...
, a prominent EPP-member, stated "I believe his idesz'splace is not in the European People's Party". Orbán's campaigns targeting billionaire George Soros
George Soros ( name written in eastern order), (born György Schwartz, August 12, 1930) is a Hungarian-American businessman and philanthropist. , he had a net worth of US$8.6 billion, Note that this site is updated daily. having donated mo ...
and Jean-Claude Juncker carried wide reverberations for Europe questioning the EPP's effort to install its lead candidate Manfred Weber
Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has served 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 Parl ...
as the next President of the European Commission.
After years of deferring a decision about the Fidesz issue, the EPP was eventually compelled to address the problem two months before the 2019 European elections, as 13 outraged member parties requested the Hungarian party's exclusion from the EPP due to its billboard campaign featuring Jean-Claude Juncker. 190 of the 193 EPP delegates supported the common agreement with Fidesz on 20 March 2019 to partially suspend its membership. According to it, Fidesz was "until further notice" excluded from EPP meetings and internal elections, but remained in the European People's Party Group
The European People's Party Group (EPP Group) is a centre-right political group of the European Parliament consisting of deputies (MEPs) from the member parties of the European People's Party (EPP). Sometimes it also includes independent MEP ...
of the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
. Fidesz did not deliver on its earlier promise to leave the EPP in case of a penalty.
In February 2020, the EPP extended the suspension of Fidesz indefinitely.
On 2 April 2020, thirteen parties within the EPP issued a joint statement aimed at Donald Tusk, asking him to expunge Fidesz from the party. Three days before this, the Hungarian Parliament had passed a law, declaring a state of emergency within Hungary, granting Prime Minister Viktor Orbán the right to rule by decree.
On 3 March 2021, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced that Fidesz would leave the EPP group after it changed its internal rules (to allow suspension and expulsion of multiple deputies and their groups), although Fidesz remained a suspended member of the EPP itself. On 18 March 2021, Fidesz decided to leave the European People's Party.
Membership
Within the EPP there are three kinds of member organisations: full members, associate members and observers. Full members are parties from EU states. They have absolute rights to vote in all the EPP's organs and on all matters. Associate members have the same voting rights as full members except for matters concerning the EU's structure or policies. These associate members are parties from EU candidate countries and EFTA
The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is a regional trade organization and free trade area consisting of four European states: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. The organization operates in parallel with the European U ...
countries. Observer parties can participate in all the activities of the EPP, and attend the Congresses and Political Assemblies, but they do not have any voting rights.
Special status of "supporting member" is granted by the Presidency to individuals and associations. Although they do not have voting rights, they can be invited by the President to attend meetings of certain organs of the party.
Full member parties
Associate members
* Democratic Party of Albania
The Democratic Party of Albania ( sq, Partia Demokratike e Shqipërisë, PD or PDSH) is a conservative political party in Albania. It has been the largest opposition party in the country since 2013.
The Democratic Party of Albania was founded ...
(PDSh)
* (VMRO–DPMNE)
* Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
(H)
* Serbian Progressive Party
The Serbian Progressive Party ( sr-cyrl, Српска напредна странка, Srpska napredna stranka, SNS) has been the ruling political party of Serbia since 2012.
Founded by Tomislav Nikolić and Aleksandar Vučić in 2008 as a s ...
(SNS)
* Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians
The Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians ( hu, Vajdasági Magyar Szövetség; sr, Савез војвођанских Мађара, Savez vojvođanskih Mađara; abbr. СВМ, SVM, or VMSZ) is a regionalist political party in Serbia representing th ...
(VMSZ/SVM)
* The Centre
Observer members
* Republican Party of Armenia
The Republican Party of Armenia (RPA, hy, Հայաստանի Հանրապետական Կուսակցություն, ՀՀԿ; ''Hayastani Hanrapetakan Kusaktsutyun'', ''HHK'') is a national-conservative political party in Armenia led by the thir ...
(HHK)
* Rule of Law (OEK)
* Heritage
Heritage may refer to:
History and society
* A heritage asset is a preexisting thing of value today
** Cultural heritage is created by humans
** Natural heritage is not
* Heritage language
Biology
* Heredity, biological inheritance of physica ...
* Belarusian Christian Democracy
The Belarusian Christian Democracy ( be, Беларуская хрысьціянская дэмакратыя, Bielaruskaja chryścijanskaja demakratyja; russian: Белорусская христианская демократия, Belorusskaya ...
(BCD)
* United Civic Party of Belarus
The United Civic Party (UCP; be, Аб'яднаная грамадзянская партыя; АГП, Abjadnanaja hramadzianskaja partyja; AHP; russian: Объединённая гражданская партия; ОГП, Obyedinonnaya grazhdans ...
(AHP)
* (The Movement for Freedom; MFF)
* Party of Democratic Action
The Party of Democratic Action ( bs, Stranka demokratske akcije; abbr. SDA) is a Bosniak nationalist, conservative political party in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
History
The Party of Democratic Action (SDA) was founded on 26 May 1990 in Sarajevo, ...
(SDA)
* Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ BiH)
* Party of Democratic Progress
The Party of Democratic Progress (, abbr. ПДП, PDP) is a centre to centre-right Serb political party in Bosnia and Herzegovina founded on 26 September 1999. It is the third-largest party in Republika Srpska entity.
History
The PDP was establ ...
(PDP)
* Croatian Democratic Union 1990
The Croatian Democratic Union 1990 ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica 1990, abbreviated HDZ 1990) is a political party of Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It split from the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina and is led by Ili ...
(HDZ 1990)
* United National Movement (UNM)
* European Georgia
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe a ...
*Democratic League of Kosovo
The Democratic League of Kosovo ( sq, Lidhja Demokratike e Kosovës, LDK) is the oldest and one of the largest political parties in Kosovo.
At the legislative elections held on 24 October 2004 the party won 45.4% of the popular vote and 47 ou ...
(LDK)
* Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova
The Liberal Democratic Party of Moldova ( ro, Partidul Liberal Democrat din Moldova, PLDM) is a conservatism, conservative List of political parties in Moldova, political party in Moldova. The party is led by Tudor Deliu. Until 2016, PLDM was led ...
(PLDM)
* Dignity and Truth Platform Party
The Dignity and Truth Platform Party ( ro, Partidul Politic „Platforma Demnitate și Adevăr”, PPDA), stylized as Platforma DA or YES Platform, is a centre-right, Liberalism, liberal political party in Moldova promoting pro-Europeanism and ...
(PPDA)
* Party of Action and Solidarity
The Party of Action and Solidarity ( ro, Partidul Acțiune și Solidaritate, PAS) is a Liberalism, liberal political party in Moldova. The PAS was founded by Maia Sandu, the former Ministry of Education, Culture and Research (Moldova), Minister ...
(PAS)
* Democratic Montenegro
Democratic Montenegro (Serbian and Montenegrin: Демократска Црна Гора / ''Demokratska Crna Gora''), also known as the Democrats (Демократе / ''Demokrate''), is a conservative liberal, centrist, populist and pro-Europe ...
(DCG)
* Bosniak Party (BS)
* Christian People's Party (KrF)
* Sammarinese Christian Democratic Party
The Sammarinese Christian Democratic Party ( it, Partito Democratico Cristiano Sammarinese, PDCS) is a Christian-democratic political party in San Marino.
The PDCS is an observer member of the European People's Party (EPP), having joined the ...
(PDCS)
* Democratic Alliance
* European Solidarity
* Batkivshchyna
The All-Ukrainian Union "Fatherland" ( uk, Всеукраїнське об'єднання "Батьківщина", translit=Vseukrains'ke obiednannia "Bat'kivshchyna") referred to as Batkivshchyna (), is a political party in Ukraine led by Pe ...
(since 2008)
* Self Reliance (since 2019)
* Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform
The Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform ( uk, Український демократичний альянс за реформи Віталія Кличка; the acronym UDAR ( uk, УДАР) translates to "strike" or "punch", en, Ukrainian ...
(UDAR)
Former members
* Belarusian Popular Front
The Belarusian Popular Front "Revival" (BPF, be, Беларускі Народны Фронт "Адраджэньне", БНФ; ''Biełaruski Narodny Front "Adradžeńnie"'', ''BNF'') was a social and political movement in Belarus in the late 1 ...
(BNF), observer member until 2017
* Centre of Social Democrats
* Union for French Democracy
The Union for French Democracy (french: Union pour la démocratie française, UDF) was a centre to centre-right political party in France. It was founded in 1978 as an electoral alliance to support President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing in order to ...
* Rally for the Republic
* Union for a Popular Movement
The Union for a Popular Movement (french: link=no, Union pour un mouvement populaire, ; UMP, ) was a centre-right List of political parties in France, political party in France that was one of the two major party, major contemporary political pa ...
* Croatian Peasant Party
The Croatian Peasant Party ( hr, Hrvatska seljačka stranka, HSS) is an agrarian political party in Croatia founded on 22 December 1904 by Antun and Stjepan Radić as Croatian Peoples' Peasant Party (HPSS). The Brothers Radić believed that t ...
(HSS), member until withdrawal May 2019.
* Fidesz
Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; hu, Fidesz – Magyar Polgári Szövetség) is a right-wing populist and national-conservative political party in Hungary, led by Viktor Orbán.
It was formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young ...
, suspended from March 20, 2019. Left EPP on March 18, 2021.
*Hungarian Democratic Forum
The Hungarian Democratic Forum ( hu, Magyar Demokrata Fórum, 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 ...
, member until 07.09.2009
* Christian Democracy
* Italian People's Party
* Christian Democratic Centre
The Christian Democratic Centre ( it, Centro Cristiano Democratico, CCD) was a Christian-democratic political party in Italy from 1994 to 2002. Formed from a right-wing split from Christian Democracy, the party joined the centre-right coalition, a ...
* United Christian Democrats
The United Christian Democrats ( it, Cristiani Democratici Uniti, CDU) was a minor Christian democratic political party in Italy. The CDU was a member of the European People's Party from 1995 until 2002.
History
The party was started in 1995 by s ...
* Italian Renewal
Italian Renewal ( it, Rinnovamento Italiano, RI) was a centrist and liberal political party in Italy.
The party was a member of The Olive Tree and centre-left coalition, while also affiliated to the European People's Party from 1998 to 2004.
...
* Forza Italia
* Union of Democrats for Europe
The Union of Democrats for Europe ( it, Unione Democratici per l'Europa, 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 ...
* The People of Freedom
The People of Freedom ( it, Il Popolo della Libertà, PdL) was a centre-right political party in Italy. The PdL, launched by Silvio Berlusconi on 18 November 2007, was initially a federation of political parties, notably including Forza Italia a ...
* New Centre-Right
New Centre-Right ( it, Nuovo Centrodestra, NCD) was a centre-right political party in Italy.
The party was launched on 15 November 2013 by a group of dissidents of The People of Freedom (PdL) who opposed the party's transformation into Forza Ita ...
* Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
(PD)
* Democratic Liberal Party (PDL)
* Christian Democratic National Peasants' Party (PNȚ-CD)
* Slovak Democratic and Christian Union – Democratic Party The Slovak Democratic and Christian Union – Democratic Party ( sk, Slovenská demokratická a kresťanská únia – Demokratická strana, SDKÚ-DS) was a liberal-conservative, Christian-democratic political party in Slovakia. The SDKÚ-DS was a m ...
(SDKÚ-DS)
* Most-Híd
* Party of the Hungarian Community
The Party of the Hungarian Community ( hu, Magyar Közösség Pártja, sk, Strana maďarskej komunity; SMK-MKP), formerly known as Party of the Hungarian Coalition ( hu, Magyar Koalíció Pártja, sk, Strana maďarskej koalície), was a politi ...
* Basque Nationalist Party
* People's Democratic Party People's Democratic Party or ''variant thereof'', could refer to:
* People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan
*People's Democratic Party (Belize)
*People's Democratic Party (Bhutan)
*People's Democratic Party (Chile)
* People's Democratic Party (Dom ...
* Justice and Development Party (observer)
* People's Movement of Ukraine
The People's Movement of Ukraine ( uk, Народний Рух України, Narodnyi Rukh Ukrayiny) is a Ukrainian political party and first opposition party in Soviet Ukraine. Often it is simply referred to as the Movement ( uk, Рух, R ...
(observer)
* Our Ukraine (observer)
* Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
(European Democrats
The European Democrats were a loose association of conservative political parties in Europe. It was a political group in the European Parliament from 1979 until 1992, when it became a subgroup of the European People's Party–European Democr ...
subgroup)
Governance
The EPP is governed by the EU Regulation No 1141/2014 on European Political Parties and European Political Foundations and its operations are supervised by th
EU Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations
Presidency
The Presidency is the executive body of the party. It decides on the general political guidelines of the EPP and presides over its Political Assembly. The Presidency is composed of the President, ten Vice-Presidents, the Honorary Presidents, the Secretary General and the Treasurer. The Chairperson of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, the Presidents of the Commission, the Parliament and the Council, and the High Representative
The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (HR/VP) is the chief co-ordinator and representative of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) within the European Union (EU). The position is currently held b ...
(if they are a member of an EPP member party) are all ''ex officio'' Vice-Presidents.
As of 1 June 2022 the Presidency of the EPP is (Vice Presidents in the order of votes received at the EPP Congress in Rotterdam):
* Manfred Weber
Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has served 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 Parl ...
– President (MEP, also EPP Group
The European People's Party Group (EPP Group) is a centre-right political group of the European Parliament consisting of deputies (MEPs) from the member parties of the European People's Party (EPP). Sometimes it also includes independent ME ...
Chairman, 2019 EPP '' Spitzenkandidat'')
* Thanasis Bakolas – Secretary General
* Mariya Gabriel
Mariya Ivanova Gabriel ( bg, Мария Иванова Габриел) (''née'' Nedelcheva, bg, Неделчева) (born 20 May 1979) is a Bulgarian politician and a member of the GERB party serving as European Commissioner for Innovation, ...
– Vice President (EU Commissioner)
* Esther de Lange – Vice President (MEP)
* Johannes Hahn
Johannes Hahn (born 2 December 1957) is an Austrian politician who has served as European Commissioner for Budget and Administration under Ursula von der Leyen since 1 December 2019.
He previously served as European Commissioner for European Ne ...
– Vice President (EU Commissioner)
* Siegfried Mureșan – Vice President (MEP)
* Dubravka Šuica
Dubravka Šuica (; born 20 May 1957) is a Croatian politician of the liberal Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) who has been Vice-President of the European Commission for Democracy and Demography since 2019. She previously served as a member of the ...
– Vice President (EU Commissioner)
* Petteri Orpo
Antti Petteri Orpo (born 3 November 1969) is a Finnish politician serving as the leader of the National Coalition Party since 2016. He has previously served as Deputy Prime Minister of Finland from 2017 to 2019, Minister of Finance from 2016 to 2 ...
– Vice President (Leader of Kokoomus, former Finance Minister)
* David McAllister
David James McAllister (born 12 January 1971) is a German politician who has been a member of the European Parliament since 2014. He is a member of the Christian Democratic Union, part of the European People's Party. He is the current Vice Pre ...
– Vice President (MEP, former Minister-President)
* Andrzej Halicki
Andrzej Halicki (born 26 November 1961) is a Polish politician of the Civic Platform (PO) who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament since the 2019 European Parliament election in Poland, 2019 elections.
Political career Career ...
– Vice President (MEP)
* Antonio Tajani – Vice President (MEP, former European Parliament President, former Commission Vice President)
* Esteban González Pons – Vice President (MEP)
* Paulo Rangel
Paulo Artur dos Santos Castro de Campos Rangel (born 18 February 1968 in Vila Nova de Gaia) is a Portuguese jurist and politician of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament since 2009. He al ...
– Treasurer (MEP)
* Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding suc ...
– ''Ex officio'' Vice-President (President of the European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
)
* Roberta Metsola
Roberta Metsola (; née Tedesco Triccas; born 18 January 1979) is a Maltese politician serving as President of the European Parliament since January 2022.
Metsola was first elected to as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) in 2013, and be ...
– ''Ex officio'' Vice-President (President of the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
)
* Sauli Niinistö – Honorary President (President of Finland)
EPP Political Assembly
The Political Assembly defines the political positions of the EPP between Congresses and decides on membership applications, political guidelines and the budget. The Political Assembly is composed of designated delegates from EPP member parties, associated parties, member associations, and other affiliated groups. The Political Assembly meets at least three times a year.
Congress
The Congress is the highest decision-making body of the EPP. It is composed of delegates from member parties, EPP associations, EPP Group
The European People's Party Group (EPP Group) is a centre-right political group of the European Parliament consisting of deputies (MEPs) from the member parties of the European People's Party (EPP). Sometimes it also includes independent ME ...
MEPs, the EPP Presidency, national heads of party and government, and European Commissioners who belong to a member party, with the numbers of delegates being weighted according to the EPP's share of MEPs, and individual delegates being elected by member parties according to member parties' rules.
Under the EPP's statutes, the Congress must meet once every three years, but it also meets normally during the years of elections for the European Parliament (every five years), and extraordinary Congresses have also been summoned. The Congress elects the EPP Presidency every three years, decides on the main policy documents and electoral programmes, and provides a platform for the EPP's heads of government and party leaders.
Activities within the party
Summit
EPP leaders meet for the EPP Summit a few hours before each meeting of the European Council in order to formulate common positions. Invitations are sent by the EPP President and attendees include, besides the members of the EPP's presidency, all Presidents and Prime Ministers who are members of the European Council and belong to the EPP; the Presidents of the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
, the European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
and the European Council, as well as the High Representative for Foreign Affairs, provided that they belong to the EPP; Deputy Prime Ministers or other ministers in those cases where the Prime Minister of a country does not belong to an EPP member party; and, where no EPP member party is part of a government, the leaders of the main EPP opposition party.
Ministerial meetings
Following the pattern of the EPP Summit the party also organises regular EPP Ministerial meetings before each meeting of the Council of the European Union
The Council of the European Union, often referred to in the treaties and other official documents simply as the Council, and informally known as the Council of Ministers, is the third of the seven Institutions of the European Union (EU) as ...
, with ministers, deputy ministers, secretaries of state and MEPs
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
in the specific policy field attending:
* General Affairs
* Foreign Affairs
* Economy and Finance
* Home Affairs
* Justice
* Defence
* Employment and Social Affairs
* Industry
* Agriculture
* Energy
* Environment
Other activities
The EPP also organises working groups on different issues on an ''ad hoc
Ad hoc is a Latin phrase meaning literally 'to this'. In English, it typically signifies a solution for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a generalized solution adaptable to collateral instances. (Compare with '' a priori''.)
C ...
'' basis, as well as meetings with its affiliated members in the European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
. It also invites individual Commissioners to the EPP Summit meetings and to EPP Ministerial meetings.
Following amendments to the EU Regulation that governs europarties in 2007, the EPP, like the other European political parties, is responsible for organising a pan-European campaign for the European elections every five years. According to the Lisbon Treaty
The Treaty of Lisbon (initially known as the Reform Treaty) is an international agreement that amends the two treaties which form the constitutional basis of the European Union (EU). The Treaty of Lisbon, which was signed by the EU member sta ...
, the parties must present candidates for President of the European Commission, but the EPP had already done this by endorsing José Manuel Barroso for a second term in April 2009.
The year 2014 saw the first fully-fledged campaign of the EPP ahead of the European elections of that year. The party nominated former Luxembourgish Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker
Jean-Claude Juncker (; born 9 December 1954) is a Luxembourgish politician who served as the 21st Prime Minister of Luxembourg from 1995 to 2013 and 12th President of the European Commission from 2014 to 2019. He also served as Finance Minister ...
as its candidate for President of the European Commission and led a pan-European campaign in coordination with the national campaigns of all its member parties.
Activities within EU institutions
As of December 2019, the EPP will hold the Presidency of the European Commission with Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding suc ...
(CDU).
Overview of the Union's institutions
European Commission
Following EPP's victory in the 2019 European Parliament election
The 2019 European Parliament election was held between 23 and 26 May 2019, the ninth parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979. A total of 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) represent more than 512 million peop ...
, Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding suc ...
was nominated by the EPP as Commission President. She was endorsed by the European Council and elected by an absolute majority in the European Parliament. On 1 December 2019, the von der Leyen Commission
The von der Leyen Commission is the current European Commission, in office since 1 December 2019 and is to last until the 2024 elections. It has Ursula von der Leyen as its president and it further consists of one commissioner from each of the ...
officially took office. It includes 10 EPP officeholders out of 27 total Commissioners.
European Parliament
The EPP has the largest group in the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
: the EPP Group
The European People's Party Group (EPP Group) is a centre-right political group of the European Parliament consisting of deputies (MEPs) from the member parties of the European People's Party (EPP). Sometimes it also includes independent ME ...
. It currently has 182 Members in the European Parliament and its chairman is the German MEP Manfred Weber
Manfred Weber (born 14 July 1972) is a German politician who has served 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 Parl ...
.
In every election for the European Parliament candidates elected on lists of member parties of the EPP are obliged to join the EPP Group in the European Parliament.
The EPP Group holds five of the fourteen vice-presidencies of the European Parliament.
European Council
The EPP has 10 out of the 27 EU heads of state or government attending the EPP summit meetings in preparation of the European Council (as of October 2021):
National legislatures
Activities beyond the European Union
In third countries
Through its associate and observer parties the EPP has five head of state or government in non-EU countries:
In the Council of Europe
The Group of the EPP in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe defends freedom of expression and information, as well as freedom of movement of ideas and religious tolerance. It promotes the principle of subsidiarity and local autonomy, as well as the defence of national, social, and other minorities. The EPP/CD Group is led by Aleksander Pociej, a member of the Polish Civic Platform
Civic Platform ( pl, Platforma Obywatelska, PO)The party is officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (''Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''). is a political party in Poland. It is currently led by Donald Tusk.
It ...
.
The EPP/CD group also includes members from parties that are not related to the EPP itself, including members of the Patriotic Union (Liechtenstein), the Progressive Citizens' Party
The Progressive Citizens' Party in Liechtenstein (german: Fortschrittliche Bürgerpartei in Liechtenstein, FBP) is a national-conservative political party in Liechtenstein. The FBP is one of the two major political parties in Liechtenstein, a ...
(Liechtenstein), and the National and Democratic Union
Rally & Issues (french: Rassemblement & Enjeux) was a conservative political party in the Principality of Monaco. The party was the main party in the coalition Horizon Monaco after the 2013 Monegasque general election.
History
The party was e ...
(Monaco).
In the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The "EPP and like-minded Group" in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, pro ...
(OSCE) is the most active political group in that body. The Group meets regularly and promotes the EPP's positions. The members of the EPP Group also participate in the election-monitoring missions of the OSCE.
The Group is chaired by Walburga Habsburg Douglas (Sweden), and its Vice-Presidents are Consiglio Di Nino
Consiglio Di Nino (born January 24, 1938) is a Canadian businessman and former Senate of Canada senator from 1990 to 2012.
Early life and career
Born in Italy, Di Nino immigrated to Canada with his family at the age of 13. He attended St Michae ...
(Canada), Vilija Aleknaitė Abramikiene (Lithuania), Laura Allegrini (Italy), and George Tsereteli (Georgia).
The Group also includes members of parties not related to the EPP, accounting for the "like-minded" part of its name. Among them are members of the Patriotic Union (Liechtenstein), the Union for the Principality
The Union for the Principality (french: Union pour la Principauté, or UP) was a centrist political party in Monaco. It was part of the center-right coalition Horizon Monaco, which won 50.34% of the popular vote, and 20 out of 24 seats in the Na ...
(Monaco), the Conservative Party
The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right.
Political parties called The Conservative P ...
of the United Kingdom, the Conservative Party of Canada, and the Republican Party of the United States.
In the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
The EPP is also present and active in the Parliamentary Assembly of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
), and forms the "EPP and Associated Members" Group there. It is led by the German CDU politician Karl Lamers, who is also the current President of the Assembly. The Group also included members of the Conservative Party of Canada and the Republican Party of the United States, but now they're members of the Conservative Group da, Den Konservative Gruppe no, Den konservative gruppen is, Flokkahópur hægrimanna
, logo = Logo of the Conservative Group.png
, colorcode =
, headquarters = Christiansborg
DK-1240 København K
, chairman = ...
Relations with the United States
The EPP has close relations with the International Republican Institute
The International Republican Institute (IRI) is an American nonprofit organization. Most of its board is drawn from the Republican Party. It is committed to advancing freedom and democracy worldwide by helping political parties to become more iss ...
(IRI), an organisation funded by the U.S. government especially to promote democracy and democratisation. The EPP and the IRI cooperate within the framework of the European Partnership Initiative.
The EPP's late President, Wilfried Martens, endorsed Senator John McCain, the Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
nominee for president, in the presidential election in 2008. McCain was also Chairman of the IRI. In 2011 Martens and McCain made joint press statements expressing their concern about the state of democracy in Ukraine.
Global networks
The EPP is the European wing of two global centre-right organisations, the International Democrat Union
The International Democrat Union (IDU) is an international alliance of centre-right political parties. Headquartered in Munich, Germany, the IDU consists of 84 full and associate members from 65 countries. It is chaired by Stephen Harper, ...
(IDU) and the Christian Democrat International
The Centrist Democrat International ( es, Internacional Demócrata de Centro) is a Christian-democratic political international. Until 2001, it was known as the Christian Democrat International (CDI); before 1999, it was known as the Christian D ...
(CDI).
Martens Centre
Following the revision in 2007 of the EU Regulation that governs European political parties, allowing the creation of European foundations affiliated to Europarties, the EPP established in the same year its official foundation/think tank, the Centre for European Studies (CES), which was later renamed as the Martens Centre
The Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies, also known as the Martens Centre and previously as the ''Centre for European Studies'', is a think tank and political foundation of the European People's Party (EPP). As the central link of a l ...
. It includes as members all the major national think tanks and foundations affiliated to EPP member parties: the Konrad Adenauer Foundation
The Konrad Adenauer Foundation (german: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, KAS) is a German political party foundation associated with but independent of the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU). The foundation's headquarters are located in Sank ...
(CDU), the Hanns Seidel Foundation (CSU), the Foundation for Analysis and Social Studies (PP), the Constantinos Karamanlis Institute for Democracy (ND), the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation (MOD), the Political Academy of the Austrian People's Party
The Political Academy of the Austrian People's Party is the educational institution of the Austrian People's Party (Österreichische Volkspartei).
The “Political Academy” supports civic, political and cultural education by means of seminars, ...
(ÖVP) and others. During the European Parliament election campaign in 2009, the Centre launched a web-based campaign module, ''tellbarroso.eu'', to support Jose Manuel Barroso
Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. The name was popular during the Mishnaic and Talmudic periods.
*Jose ben Abin
*Jose ben Akabya
*Jose the Galilean ...
, the EPP's candidate for re-election as Commission President.
In 2014, to honour Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Achiel Emma Martens (; 19 April 1936 – 9 October 2013) was a Belgian politician who served as prime minister of Belgium from 1979 to 1981 and from 1981 to 1992. A member of the Flemish Christian People's Party, during his premiership ...
– the late President of the EPP who also founded the CES – changed its name to Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies or simply Martens Centre
The Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies, also known as the Martens Centre and previously as the ''Centre for European Studies'', is a think tank and political foundation of the European People's Party (EPP). As the central link of a l ...
.
The current President of the Martens Centre is former Slovak Prime Minister Mikuláš Dzurinda
Mikuláš Dzurinda (; born 4 February 1956) is a Slovak politician who was the prime minister of Slovakia from 30 October 1998 to 4 July 2006. He is the founder and leader of the Slovak Democratic Coalition (SDK) and then the Slovak Democratic a ...
.
The Budapest-based Robert Schuman Institute and the Luxembourg-based Robert Schuman Foundation are also affiliated with the European People's Party.
EPP associations
The EPP is linked to several specific associations that focus on specific groups and organise seminars, forums, publications, and other activities.
Small and Medium Entrepreneurs Europe (SME Europe)
SME Europe is the official business organisation of the EPP and serves as a network for pro-business politicians and political organisations. Its main objective is to shape EU policy in a more SME-friendly way in close cooperation with the SME Circle of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, the DG Enterprise and the pro-business organisations of the EPP's member parties. Its top priorities are to reform the legal framework for SMEs all over Europe and to promote and support the interests of small and medium-sized enterprises. SME Europe was founded in May 2012 by three Members of the European Parliament, Paul Rübig, Nadezhda Neynsky
Nadezhda Neynsky,Name after her second marriage after she divorced with her previous husband. previously known as Nadezhda Nikolova Mihaylova ( bg, Надежда Николова Михайлова) (born 9 August 1962 in Sofia) is a Bulgarian ...
, and Bendt Bendtsen.
European Democrat Students
European Democrat Students (EDS) is now the official students' organisation of the EPP, though it was founded in 1961, 15 years before the EPP itself. Led by Virgilio Falco, EDS has 40 member organisations, representing nearly 1,600,000 students and young peopleStudents on the Right Way: European Democrat Students 1961–2011
. thinkingeurope.eu. Retrieved on 7 September 2013. in 31 countries, including Belarus and
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. Every year EDS hosts Summer and Winter "universities", and several seminars. It also regularly publishes a magazine, ''Bullseye'', and organises topical campaigns.
European Seniors' Union
Founded in
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the Largest cities of the Europ ...
in 1995 and led by Ann Hermans of the
CD&V, the European Seniors' Union (ESU) is the largest political senior citizens' organisation in Europe. The ESU is represented in 26 states with 45 organisations and about 500,000 members.
European Union of Christian Democratic Workers
The European Union of Christian Democratic Workers (EUCDW) is the labour organisation of the EPP, with 24 member organisations in 18 countries. As the officially recognised EPP association of workers, the EUCDW is led by
Elmar Brok
Elmar Peter Brok (born 14 May 1946) is a German politician who served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1980 until 2019, who is best known for his role as chairman of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs. He is a mem ...
,
MEP. It aims at the political unification of a democratic Europe, the development of the EPP based on Christian social teaching, and the defence of workers' interests in European policy-making.
Women of the European People's Party
The Women of the European People's Party (EPP Women) is recognised by the EPP as the official association of women from all like-minded political parties of Europe. EPP Women has more than 40 member organisations from countries of the European Union and beyond. All of them are women's organisations of political parties that are members of the EPP. EPP Women is led by
Doris Pack.
Youth of the European People's Party
The Youth of the European People's Party (YEPP), led by Lídia Pereira, is the EPP's official youth organisation. It has 64 member organisations, bringing together between one and two million young people in 40 countries.
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*Herman, L., Hoerner, J., & Lacey, J. (2021).
Why does the European Right accommodate backsliding states? An analysis of 24 European People's Party votes (2011–2019)" ''European Political Science Review''
External links
*
Martens Centre the EPP think-tankEPP Group in the European ParliamentEPP Group in the Committee of the RegionsEPP Group in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of EuropeEPP Youth (YEPP)EPP Students (EDS)EPP WomenEPP Seniors (ESU)EPP SME UnionEPP Workers (EUCDW)
{{authority control
Political parties established in 1976
Pan-European political parties
Centre-right parties in Europe
Conservative parties in Europe
Christian democratic parties in Europe
Liberal conservative parties
European Union and the Catholic Church
International Democrat Union
1976 establishments in Europe