The International Democrat Union (IDU) is an
international alliance of
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 parties
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or pol ...
. Headquartered in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, the IDU consists of 84 full and associate members from 65 countries. It is
chaired by
Stephen Harper
Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...
, former
Prime Minister of Canada
The prime minister of Canada (french: premier ministre du Canada, link=no) is the head of government of Canada. Under the Westminster system, the prime minister governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority the elected Hou ...
, two affiliated international organizations (
International Young Democrat Union
The International Young Democrat Union (IYDU) is a global alliance of centre-right political youth organisations and the youth wing of the International Democrat Union.
The IYDU in its current form was founded in March 1991 in Washington, D.C ...
and
International Women's Democrat Union) and six affiliated regional organizations (
Union of Latin American Parties
The Union of Latin American Parties ( es, Unión de Partidos Latinoamericanos, pt, União de Partidos Latino-Americanos) is an alliance of centre-right and right-wing political parties in Latin America and Canada. It is affiliated with the glob ...
,
Asia Pacific Democrat Union
The Asia Pacific Democrat Union (APDU) is an international regional association of member parties, associated to the International Democrat Union. Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickramasinghe is the current chairperson of the Asia Pacific Democrat ...
,
Caribbean Democrat Union
The Caribbean Democrat Union is an alliance of moderate, centre-right and conservative political parties and individuals the Caribbean. It is affiliated to the global International Democrat Union
The International Democrat Union (IDU) is an ...
,
Democrat Union of Africa
The Democrat Union of Africa is an alliance of centre-right political parties in Africa. Founded in Dakar, Senegal, in 1997, it is affiliated with the global International Democrat Union. It aims to bring together parties with similar aims and po ...
,
European People's Party
The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Ch ...
and
European Conservatives and Reformists Party
The European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party), formerly known as Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists (AECR) (2009–2016) and Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE) (2016–2019), is a conservativ ...
).
The IDU allows centre-right conservative
political parties
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or pol ...
around the world to establish contacts and discuss different views on public policy and related matters. Their stated goal is the promotion of "democracy and
fcentre-right policies around the globe". The IDU has some overlap of member parties with the
Centrist 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), but the CDI is more
centrist
Centrism is a political outlook or position involving acceptance or support of a balance of social equality and a degree of social hierarchy while opposing political changes that would result in a significant shift of society strongly to Left-w ...
and
communitarian than the IDU.
Though the IDU was founded to be politically on the
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 ...
, a number of its member parties have been increasingly seen as further
right
Rights are law, legal, social, or ethics, ethical principles of Liberty, freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people according to some legal system, social convent ...
on the political spectrum.
The group was founded in 1983 as the umbrella organisation for 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),
Caribbean Democrat Union
The Caribbean Democrat Union is an alliance of moderate, centre-right and conservative political parties and individuals the Caribbean. It is affiliated to the global International Democrat Union
The International Democrat Union (IDU) is an ...
(CDU), and the
Asia Pacific Democrat Union
The Asia Pacific Democrat Union (APDU) is an international regional association of member parties, associated to the International Democrat Union. Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickramasinghe is the current chairperson of the Asia Pacific Democrat ...
(APDU). Created at the instigation of 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 ...
and
U.S. Vice President George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...
, the organisation was founded at a joint meeting of the EDU and APDU in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
.
The IDU has several regional affiliates: the
Democrat Union of Africa
The Democrat Union of Africa is an alliance of centre-right political parties in Africa. Founded in Dakar, Senegal, in 1997, it is affiliated with the global International Democrat Union. It aims to bring together parties with similar aims and po ...
, the
Union of Latin American Parties
The Union of Latin American Parties ( es, Unión de Partidos Latinoamericanos, pt, União de Partidos Latino-Americanos) is an alliance of centre-right and right-wing political parties in Latin America and Canada. It is affiliated with the glob ...
, the
Asia Pacific Democrat Union
The Asia Pacific Democrat Union (APDU) is an international regional association of member parties, associated to the International Democrat Union. Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickramasinghe is the current chairperson of the Asia Pacific Democrat ...
, the
Caribbean Democrat Union
The Caribbean Democrat Union is an alliance of moderate, centre-right and conservative political parties and individuals the Caribbean. It is affiliated to the global International Democrat Union
The International Democrat Union (IDU) is an ...
, the
European People's Party
The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Ch ...
, and the
European Conservatives and Reformists Party
The European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party), formerly known as Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists (AECR) (2009–2016) and Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE) (2016–2019), is a conservativ ...
. It also has an affiliated
youth wing
A youth wing is a subsidiary, autonomous, or independently allied front of a larger organization (usually a political party but occasionally another type of organization) that is formed in order to rally support for that organization from members ...
in the
International Young Democrat Union
The International Young Democrat Union (IYDU) is a global alliance of centre-right political youth organisations and the youth wing of the International Democrat Union.
The IYDU in its current form was founded in March 1991 in Washington, D.C ...
, and an affiliated
women's wing A women's wing is an organisation affiliated with a political party that consists of that party's female membership or acts to promote women within a party. The organisations take different roles and types, with some giving women the option of join ...
in the
International Women's Democrat Union.
Founding
The IDU was founded in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
on 24 June 1983.
According to
Richard V. Allen
Richard Vincent Allen (born January 1, 1936) was the United States National Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan from 1981 to 1982, having been Reagan's chief foreign policy advisor from 1977. He has been a fellow of the Hoover Institutio ...
, to be admitted as a member, a party must qualify as a "mainstream conservative" party influenced by
classical liberalism
Classical liberalism is a political tradition
Political culture describes how culture impacts politics. Every political system is embedded in a particular political culture.
Definition
Gabriel Almond defines it as "the particular patt ...
.
The founding declaration was signed by 19 persons:
Member parties
Full members
The IDU has 84 member parties.
Chairpersons
See also
*
Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe
The European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party), formerly known as Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists (AECR) (2009–2016) and Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe (ACRE) (2016–2019), is a conservativ ...
*
Caribbean Democrat Union
The Caribbean Democrat Union is an alliance of moderate, centre-right and conservative political parties and individuals the Caribbean. It is affiliated to the global International Democrat Union
The International Democrat Union (IDU) is an ...
*
Centrist 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 ...
*
European People's Party
The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian-democratic, conservative, and liberal-conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Ch ...
*
European Conservatives and Reformists
The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) is a soft Eurosceptic, anti- federalist political group of the European Parliament. The ECR is the parliamentary group of the European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party) European pol ...
*
Political international
A political international is a transnational organization of political parties having similar ideology or political orientation (e.g. communism, socialism, and Islamism). The international works together on points of agreement to co-ordinate acti ...
s: such as
Liberal International
Liberal International (LI) is a worldwide organization of liberal political parties - a political international. It was founded in Oxford in 1947 and has become the pre-eminent network for liberal parties, aiming to strengthen liberalism around ...
, the corresponding liberal organisation; and
Socialist International
The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism. It consists mostly of socialist and labour-oriented political parties and organisations. ...
References
External links
IDU official websiteIYDU official websiteIDU enumeration of constituent members
{{Authority control
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, ...
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, ...
Organisations based in Munich
Conservatism-related lists
1983 establishments in England
Conservative parties