A political international is a transnational organization of

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 political ideology ...

having similar

ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied pri ...

or political orientation (e.g.

communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, ...

socialism Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes th ...

, and

Islamism Islamism (also often called political Islam or Islamic fundamentalism) is a political ideology which posits that modern State (polity), states and Administrative division, regions should be reconstituted in constitutional, Economics, econom ...

). The international works together on points of agreement to co-ordinate activity. Political internationals have increased in popularity and influence since their beginnings in the political left of 19th-century Europe as political activists have paid more attention to developments for or against their ideological favor in other countries and continents. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, other ideological movements formed their political internationals to communicate among aligned parliamentarians and legislative candidates as well as to communicate with intergovernmental and supranational organizations such as the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...

and later the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

. Internationals also form supranational and regional branches (e.g. a European branch or an African branch) and maintain fraternal or governing relationships with sector-specific wings (e.g. youth or women's wings). Internationals usually do not have a significant role. Internationals provide the parties an opportunity for sharing of experience. The parties belonging to internationals have various organizational obligations and can be expelled for not meeting those obligations. For example, during the 2011

Arab Spring The Arab Spring ( ar, الربيع العربي) was a series of anti-government protests, uprisings and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Arab world in the early 2010s. It began in Tunisia in response to corruption and econo ...

the

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 organisation ...

expelled the governing parties of

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

for performing actions incompatible with the values of this international.

List of internationals

Current

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 ...

(

Christian democracy 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 ...

), founded in 1961 *

Committee for a Workers' International The Committee for a Workers' International (CWI) was an international association of Trotskyist political parties. Today, two groups claim to be the continuation of the CWI. History Founding The origins of the CWI can be traced to a group of ...

(

Trotskyism Trotskyism is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Ukrainian-Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky and some other members of the Left Opposition and Fourth International. Trotsky self-identified as an orthodox Marxist, a ...

), founded in 2019 in it's current form, originally founded in 1974 * Foro de São Paulo (

socialism of the 21st century Socialism of the 21st century ( es, Socialismo del siglo XXI; pt, Socialismo do século XXI; german: Sozialismus des 21. Jahrhunderts) is an interpretation of socialist principles first advocated by German sociologist and political analyst ...

), founded in 1990 * Fourth International (

), founded in 1938 by

Leon Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein. ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky; uk, link= no, Лев Давидович Троцький; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trotskij'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky''. (), was a Russian ...

and later split into several competing internationals and subsequently reunified in 1963 *

Global Greens The Global Greens (GG) is an international network of political parties and movements which work to implement the Global Greens Charter. It consists of various national Green political parties, partner networks, and other organizations associate ...

(

green politics Green politics, or ecopolitics, is a political ideology that aims to foster an ecologically sustainable society often, but not always, rooted in environmentalism, nonviolence, social justice and grassroots democracy. Wall 2010. p. 12-13. It be ...

), founded in 2001 * Humanist International (

humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

), founded in 1989 by the Humanist Movement *

Informal Anarchist Federation Informal Anarchist Federation (FAI) (in Italian: ''Federazione Anarchica Informale'') is an insurrectionary anarchist organization. It has been described by Italian intelligence sources as a "horizontal" structure of various anarchist groups, u ...

(

insurrectionary anarchism Insurrectionary anarchism is a revolutionary theory and tendency within the anarchist movement that emphasizes insurrection as a revolutionary practice. It is critical of formal organizations such as labor unions and federations that are base ...

), founded in 2003 * International Alliance of Libertarian Parties (

libertarianism Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...

), founded in 2015 * International of Anarchist Federations ( synthesis anarchism), founded in 1968 *

International Communist League (Fourth Internationalist) The International Communist League (Fourth Internationalist), earlier known as the International Spartacist tendency is a Trotskyist international. Its largest constituent party is the Spartacist League (US). There are smaller sections of the ICL ...

(

), founded in 1979 * International Coordination of Revolutionary Parties and Organizations (

Maoism Maoism, officially called Mao Zedong Thought by the Chinese Communist Party, is a variety of Marxism–Leninism that Mao Zedong developed to realise a socialist revolution in the agricultural, pre-industrial society of the Republic of Ch ...

), founded in 2010 *

International Conference of Marxist–Leninist Parties and Organizations (Unity & Struggle) The International Conference of Marxist–Leninist Parties and Organizations ( es, Conferencia Internacional de Partidos y Organizaciones Marxista-Leninistas; abbreviations: ICMLPO or CIPOML) is an international organization of anti-revisioni ...

( Hoxhaism), founded in 1994 *

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, ...

(

conservatism 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 civilizati ...

), founded in 1993 * International League of Peoples' Struggle (

anti-imperialism Anti-imperialism in political science and international relations is a term used in a variety of contexts, usually by nationalist movements who want to secede from a larger polity (usually in the form of an empire, but also in a multi-ethnic ...

), founded in 2001 *

International Marxist Tendency The International Marxist Tendency (IMT) is an international Trotskyist political tendency founded by Ted Grant and his supporters following their break with the Committee for a Workers' International in 1992. The organization's website, Marx ...

(

), founded in 1992 * International Meeting of Communist and Workers Parties (

Marxism–Leninism Marxism–Leninism is a communist ideology which was the main communist movement throughout the 20th century. Developed by the Bolsheviks, it was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, its satellite states in the Eastern Bloc, and vario ...

), founded in 1998 *

International Monarchist League The International Monarchist League (known until the mid-1990s as the Monarchist League) is an organisation dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the monarchical system of government and the principle of monarchy worldwide. It has been ...

(

monarchism Monarchism is the advocacy of the system of monarchy or monarchical rule. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government independently of any specific monarch, whereas one who supports a particular monarch is a royalist. ...

constitutional monarchy A constitutional monarchy, parliamentary monarchy, or democratic monarchy is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

), founded in 1943 *

International Revolutionary Left International Revolutionary Left ( es, Izquierda Revolucionaria Internacional) is a Trotskyist international tendency that split from the Committee for a Workers' International in 2019. Background Following a disagreement with International M ...

(

), founded in 2019 *

International Socialist Alternative International Socialist Alternative is an international association of Trotskyist political parties. The group was founded in 1974 as the Committee for a Workers' International, by supporters of Militant from 12 countries. In August 2019, a fa ...

(

), founded in 2020 * International Socialist League (

), founded in 2019 * International Socialist Tendency (

), founded in 1958 * International Workers' Association (

anarcho-syndicalism Anarcho-syndicalism is a political philosophy and anarchist school of thought that views revolutionary industrial unionism or syndicalism as a method for workers in capitalist society to gain control of an economy and thus control influence in ...

), founded in 1922 *

International Workers League – Fourth International The International Workers League (Fourth International), also known as IWLfi ( es, Liga Internacional de los Trabajadores (Cuarta Internacional) and LITci; pt, Liga Internacional dos Trabalhadores - Quarta Internacional or LIT-QI) is a Morenist ...

(

), founded in 1982 *

League for the Fifth International The League for the Fifth International (L5I) is an international grouping of revolutionary Trotskyist organisations around a common programme and perspectives. History L5I was founded as the Movement for a Revolutionary Communist International ...

(

), founded in 1989 *

League for the Fourth International The League for the Fourth International (LFI) is a Trotskyist international organization that has bases in Mexico, Brazil, Italy, the United States and Germany. All of these are very small and based in at most one or two cities. Like other in ...

(

), founded in 1996 *

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 aroun ...

(

liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostilit ...

), founded in 1947 and constituted by the Oxford Manifesto *

Muslim Brotherhood The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( '), is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic studies, Islamic scholar and scho ...

(

), founded in 1928 *

Hizb ut-Tahrir Hizb ut-Tahrir (Arabicحزب التحرير (Translation: Party of Liberation) is an international, political organization which describes its ideology as Islam, and its aim the re-establishment of the Islamic Khilafah (Caliphate) to resume Isl ...

(

), founded in 1958 *

Pirate Parties International Pirate Parties International (PPI) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organization with headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Formed in 2010, it serves as a worldwide organization for Pirate Parties, currently representing ...

(

pirate politics Pirate Party is a label adopted by political parties around the world. Pirate parties support civil rights, direct democracy (including e-democracy) or alternatively participation in government, reform of copyright and patent law, free s ...

), founded in 2010 *

Progressive Alliance The Progressive Alliance (PA) is a political international of social democratic and progressive political parties and organisations founded on 22 May 2013 in Leipzig, Germany. The alliance was formed as an alternative to the existing Socia ...

(

social democracy Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote s ...

and

progressivism Progressivism holds that it is possible to improve human societies through political action. As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancements in science, tech ...

), a network of

centre-left Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The ...

parties formed as a rival to the

in 2013 * Progressive International (

democratic socialism Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management within ...

and

), an organization uniting progressive left-wing activists and organizations, formed in 2020 *

(

), founded in 1951 *

Trotskyist Fraction – Fourth International __NOTOC__ The Trotskyist Fraction – Fourth International is a political international of Trotskyist political organizations that claim to adhere to the political legacy of the Fourth International. It was formed by groups which arose as the "In ...

(

), founded in 2004 * World Socialist Movement (

Marxism Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...

), founded in 1904 *

World Union of National Socialists The World Union of National Socialists (WUNS) is an organisation founded in 1962 as an umbrella group for neo-Nazi organisations across the globe. History Formation The movement came about when the leader of the American Nazi Party, George ...

(

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...

), founded in 1962

Defunct

* Alliance of Democrats (

), gathering groups similar in outlook to the European Democratic Party and the

United States Democratic Party The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. Founded in 1828, it was predominantly built by Martin Van Buren, who assembled a wide cadre of politicians in every state behind war hero And ...

founded in 2005, but inactive since 2012 *

Anarchist St. Imier International The Anarchist International of St. Imier was an international workers' organization formed in 1872 after the split in the First International between the anarchists and the Marxists. This followed the 'expulsions' of Mikhail Bakunin and James G ...

(

anarchism Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

), formed after the expulsion of the anarchists from the First International by the Marxist faction at the Hague Congress, founded in 1872 and defunct by 1877 *

(

), founded in 1974 *

Communist International The Communist International (Comintern), also known as the Third International, was a Soviet-controlled international organization founded in 1919 that advocated world communism. The Comintern resolved at its Second Congress to "struggle by ...

(

revolutionary socialism Revolutionary socialism is a political philosophy, doctrine, and tradition within socialism that stresses the idea that a social revolution is necessary to bring about structural changes in society. More specifically, it is the view that revolut ...

), also known as Comintern and the Third International, a federation of

communist parties A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. ...

founded in 1919 by

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...

and dissolved in 1943 by

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet Union, Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as Ge ...

* E2D International (

E-democracy E-democracy (a combination of the words electronic and democracy), also known as digital democracy or Internet democracy, is the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in political and governance processes. The term is bel ...

direct democracy Direct democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which the electorate decides on policy initiatives without elected representatives as proxies. This differs from the majority of currently established democracies, which are repres ...

), founded on 1 January 2011, but inactive since 29 August 2013 *

Fascist International The 1934 Montreux Fascist conference, also known as the Fascist International Congress, was a meeting held by deputies from a number of European Fascist organizations. The conference was held on 16–17 December 1934 in Montreux, Switzerland. The ...

(

fascism Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and t ...

), also known as the 1934 Montreux Fascist conference, a conference of European fascist parties held on 16–17 December 1934 in Montreux, Switzerland * International Libertarian Solidarity (

), founded in 2001 * International Communist Seminar (

), founded in 1996 and defunct by 2014 * International Conference of Marxist–Leninist Parties and Organizations (International Newsletter), founded in 1998, defunct by 2017 * International Revolutionary Marxist Centre ( Centrist Marxism), founded in 1932 and dissolved in 1940 *

International Workingmen's Association The International Workingmen's Association (IWA), often called the First International (1864–1876), was an international organisation which aimed at uniting a variety of different left-wing socialist, communist and anarchist groups and trad ...

(

and

), commonly known as the First International, founded in 1864 and defunct by 1876 * International Working People's Association (

), also known as the Black International, founded in 1881 and defunct by 1886 * Revolutionary Internationalist Movement, (

) 1984–unknown *

Second International The Second International (1889–1916) was an organisation of Labour movement, socialist and labour parties, formed on 14 July 1889 at two simultaneous Paris meetings in which delegations from twenty countries participated. The Second Internatio ...

(

), founded in 1889 and dissolved in 1916 *

Situationist International The Situationist International (SI) was an international organization of social revolutionaries made up of avant-garde artists, intellectuals, and political theorists. It was prominent in Europe from its formation in 1957 to its dissolution ...

(

libertarian socialism Libertarian socialism, also known by various other names, is a left-wing,Diemer, Ulli (1997)"What Is Libertarian Socialism?" The Anarchist Library. Retrieved 4 August 2019. anti-authoritarian, anti-statist and libertarianLong, Roderick T. (2 ...

), revolutionary grouping operating from 1957 to 1972

Not internationals, but similar in functioning

All-African People's Revolutionary Party The All-African People's Revolutionary Party (A-APRP) is a socialist political party founded by Kwame Nkrumah and organized in Conakry, Guinea in 1968. The party expanded to the United States in 1972 and claims to have recruited members from 33 c ...

, Pan Africanist transnational political party with chapters both in Africa and in the United States * Anarkismo.net, grouping of platformist/ especifista anarchist political organisations launched in 2005 to facilitate greater international cooperation, but far from being an international at this point * Communist Party of the Soviet Union (2001), transnational alliance of anti revisionist communist parties in the former Soviet Union *

Coordination Committee of Maoist Parties and Organisations of South Asia The Coordination Committee of Maoist Parties and Organizations of South Asia (CCOMPOSA) is an umbrella organization of various South Asian Maoist parties and movements and its purpose is to coordinate their activities throughout South Asia (as w ...

, transnational alliance of Maoist parties in South Asia * Former Liberation Movements of Southern Africa, a conference of former anti colonial movements in Southern Africa * Progressive Labor Party, transnational Marxist-Leninist political party with the stated goal of one world communist party *

International Conference of Asian Political Parties The International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP) is a forum of political parties of Asia-Oceanian countries, which was launched in Manila, Philippines in September 2000. The objectives of the conference are to promote exchanges ...

, founded in 2002, promotes cooperation and exchange between Asian parties of several ideologies * International Communist Current, left communist international organization that does not believe in national parties but in one international organization * International Communist Party, left communist international party that rejects the concept of a national party *

Transnational Radical Party The Transnational Radical Party (TRP), whose official name is Nonviolent Radical Party, Transnational and Transparty (NRPTT), is a political association of citizens, members of parliament and members of government of various national and political ...

, political association of

libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's en ...

, liberal and

radical Radical may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics * Radical politics, the political intent of fundamental societal change *Radicalism (historical), the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe an ...

citizens, parliamentarians and government members of various national and political backgrounds founded in 1989 and associated with the

United Nations Economic and Social Council The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC; french: links=no, Conseil économique et social des Nations unies, ) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields ...

* Union of Communist Parties – Communist Party of the Soviet Union, transnational political alliance of communist parties in the former Soviet Union * Volt Europa, European Federalist transnational political party with chapters in various European countries *

World Ecological Parties The World Ecological Parties (WEP) is an international association of mainly ecological parties. The WEP was founded in November 2003 in Mainz, Germany and elected its first board in April 2004 in Strasbourg, France. The WEP is independent from ...

, association of centrist environmentalist parties founded in 2003 * Permanent Conference of Political Parties of Latin America and the Caribbean, promotes cooperation and exchange between Latin American parties of several ideologies *

Axis of Resistance The term ''Axis of Resistance'' ( fa, محور مقاومت, translit=mehvar–e moqâvemat, ) refers to an anti-Western, anti-Israeli and anti-Saudi political and informal military alliance between Iran, Palestine, the Syrian Government ...

-- ideologically diverse; includes

Shia Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, mos ...

Islamist,

Baathist Ba'athism, also stylized as Baathism, (; ar, البعثية ' , from ' , meaning "renaissance" or "resurrection"Hans Wehr''Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic'' (4th ed.), page 80) is an Arab nationalist ideology which promotes the creation a ...

, and other factions affiliated with

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

and the Assad government in Syria. Notable members include

Hezbollah Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...

, the Houthi Movement in

Yemen Yemen (; ar, ٱلْيَمَن, al-Yaman), officially the Republic of Yemen,, ) is a country in Western Asia. It is situated on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, and borders Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the northeast and ...

, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Mobilization Forces in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

Footnotes

{{Political internationals Supraorganizations Types of political parties

List of internationals

Current

Defunct

Not internationals, but similar in functioning

See also

Footnotes