EH Bildu, short for Euskal Herria Bildu ( en, link=yes, Basque Country Gather
or Basque Country Unite) is a
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
,
Basque nationalist
Basque nationalism ( eu, eusko abertzaletasuna ; es, nacionalismo vasco; french: nationalisme basque) is a form of nationalism that asserts that Basques, an ethnic group indigenous to the western Pyrenees, are a nation and promotes the po ...
,
pro-independence political coalition active in the
Spanish autonomous communities of
Basque Country,
Navarre
Navarre (; es, Navarra ; eu, Nafarroa ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre ( es, Comunidad Foral de Navarra, links=no ; eu, Nafarroako Foru Komunitatea, links=no ), is a foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, ...
and
Burgos Province.
EHB's predecessor Bildu ("Gather") was launched on 3 April 2011 to participate in the
May 2011 local elections It was formed as a reaction to the
Supreme Court of Spain
The Supreme Court ('', TS'') is the highest court in the Kingdom of Spain. Originally established pursuant to Title V of the Constitution of 1812 to replace —in all matters that affected justice— the System of Councils, and currently regula ...
's ruling in March 2011 that barred the new left-wing Basque nationalist ''(
Abertzale left)''
Sortu party from electoral participation. Bildu was an alliance of the centre-left
Eusko Alkartasuna, left-wing
Alternatiba and independents of the left-wing nationalist spectrum, many of whom former members or supporters of the outlawed
Batasuna
Batasuna (; en, Unity) was a Basque nationalist political party. Based mainly in Spain, it was banned in 2003, after a court ruling declared proven that the party was financing ETA with public money.
The party is included in the "European Union ...
party.
EHB was launched on 10 June 2012 in
San Sebastián
San Sebastian, officially known as Donostia–San Sebastián (names in both local languages: ''Donostia'' () and ''San Sebastián'' ()) is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the ...
by five founding components: Eusko Alkartasuna,
Aralar, Alternatiba, Sortu, and independents of the ''Abertzale left'' (groups and independent individuals from the Basque leftist-nationalist milieu, many of whom had been members of
Batasuna
Batasuna (; en, Unity) was a Basque nationalist political party. Based mainly in Spain, it was banned in 2003, after a court ruling declared proven that the party was financing ETA with public money.
The party is included in the "European Union ...
), all of whom had been previously members of the
Amaiur
Amaiur was a left-wing Basque nationalist and separatist political coalition from the Basque Country and Navarre. The name of the coalition comes from the fortress of Amaiur in Navarre, which was one of the last Basque strongholds during the S ...
coalition. On 3 July 2012
Laura Mintegi was chosen as candidate for ''
Lehendakari'' in the
2012 Basque parliamentary election. Mintegi, a professor at the
University of the Basque Country, formerly stood as a candidate for
Herri Batasuna
Herri Batasuna (; en, Popular Unity; HB) was a far-left Basque nationalist coalition in Spain. It was founded in 1978 and defined itself as abertzale, left-wing, socialist, and supported the independence of the Greater Basque Country. It was r ...
.
History
Formation of Bildu
Bildu was formed as a response to the March 2011 ruling by the Supreme Court of Spain that banned a new Basque party called
Sortu from being registered. Bildu was a coalition of the social-democratic
Eusko Alkartasuna,
Alternatiba (a splinter group of
Ezker Batua) and independent individuals from the Basque leftist-nationalist environment, originating from the outlawed Batasuna party. Bildu was banned by the Supreme Court as well, due to their ties to
Batasuna
Batasuna (; en, Unity) was a Basque nationalist political party. Based mainly in Spain, it was banned in 2003, after a court ruling declared proven that the party was financing ETA with public money.
The party is included in the "European Union ...
, the political wing of the terrorist group
ETA
Eta (uppercase , lowercase ; grc, ἦτα ''ē̂ta'' or ell, ήτα ''ita'' ) is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, representing the close front unrounded vowel . Originally denoting the voiceless glottal fricative in most dialects, ...
. The decision to ban Bildu resulted in street protests in
Bilbao
)
, motto =
, image_map =
, mapsize = 275 px
, map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao
, pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe
, pushpin_map_caption ...
and other cities. However, on 5 May 2011, exactly the day the election campaign started off, the
Constitutional Court of Spain
The Constitutional Court ( es, Tribunal Constitucional) is the supreme interpreter of the Spanish Constitution, with the power to determine the constitutionality of acts and statutes made by any public body, central, regional, or local in Spa ...
lifted the ban and Bildu was allowed to take part in elections.
In the
2020 Basque regional election
The 2020 Basque regional election was held on Sunday, 12 July 2020, to elect the 12th Basque Parliament, Parliament of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Autonomous Community. All 75 seats in the Parliament were up for election. The ...
3 former ETA members were elected: Arkaitz Rodríguez, Iker Casanova e Ikoitz Arrese.
[Tres expresos de ETA entre los 22 diputados de Bildu en el Parlamento Vasco](_blank)
/ref>
2011 regional and local elections
At the 2011 local elections Bildu received 26% of the vote in the Basque region, coming second only to the Basque Nationalist Party
The Basque Nationalist Party (, EAJ ; es, Partido Nacionalista Vasco, PNV; french: Parti Nationaliste Basque, PNB; EAJ-PNV), officially Basque National Party in English,) was rejected by party members in November 2011. Nonetheless, the party did ...
(PNV). The party won seats in most of the councils of the Southern Basque Country
The Southern Basque Country ( eu, Hegoalde, Hego Euskal Herria; es, Hegoalde, País Vasco y Navarra, País Vasco peninsular) is a term used to refer to the Basque territories within Spain as a unified whole.
Name
In Basque language, natives h ...
, including San Sebastián (where it came up first), Bilbao
)
, motto =
, image_map =
, mapsize = 275 px
, map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao
, pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe
, pushpin_map_caption ...
, Vitoria-Gasteiz
Vitoria-Gasteiz (; ), also alternatively spelled as Vittoria in old English-language sources, is the seat of government and the capital city of the Basque Country and of the province of Álava in northern Spain. It holds the autonomous community' ...
and Pamplona
Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region.
Lying at near above ...
.
2011 general election
For the 2011 general election Eusko Alkartasuna, Alternatiba and their allies formed a new alliance, under the name Amaiur
Amaiur was a left-wing Basque nationalist and separatist political coalition from the Basque Country and Navarre. The name of the coalition comes from the fortress of Amaiur in Navarre, which was one of the last Basque strongholds during the S ...
, along with Aralar, previously part of Nafarroa Bai, and other '' abertzale'' (i.e., Basque nationalist) groups.
2012 Basque Parliament Elections
In the election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operat ...
for the Basque Parliament that took place on 21 October 2012, EH Bildu the second most seats after the more established EAJ-PNV. The coalition party won 21 out of 75 seats with 25% of the popular vote. No single party won a majority in this election.
2014 European Parliament election
In the 2014 European Parliament election
The 2014 European Parliament election was held in the European Union, from 22 to 25 May 2014.
It was the 8th parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979, and the first in which the European political parties fielded candid ...
EH Bildu participated as part of the list The Peoples Decide (LPD), comprising left-wing nationalist and separatist parties from several autonomous regions of Spain. On the first position of that list was EHB member Josu Juaristi who was elected member of the European parliament. He joined the group of the European United Left–Nordic Green Left
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 ...
(GUE/NGL).
Electoral performance
Regional parliaments
Basque Parliament
Parliament of Navarre
Cortes Generales
Nationwide
Regional breakdown
European Parliament
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
{{commons category, Euskal Herria Bildu
2012 establishments in Spain
Articles containing video clips
Basque politics
Nationalist parties in Spain
Political parties established in 2012
Political parties in Navarre
Political parties in Northern Basque Country
Political party alliances in Spain
Regionalist parties in Spain
Socialist parties in the Basque Country (autonomous community)
Organisations based in San Sebastián