The Democratic Party, initially known as ''Our Party'', was formed in May 1969 by

Desmond Donnelly Desmond Louis Donnelly (16 October 1920 – 3 April 1974) was a British politician, author and journalist who was a member of four political parties during the course of his career, and moved between parties on five occasions. Origins Donn ...

, who had been a Labour MP for

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

, but had resigned the whip in January 1968 and been expelled by the party two months later. His

Constituency Labour Party A constituency Labour Party (CLP) is an organisation of members of the British Labour Party who live in a particular parliamentary constituency. In England and Wales, CLP boundaries coincide with those for UK parliamentary constituencies. In Sc ...

supported him and was disaffiliated from the party along with Donnelly's expulsion. The party had an anti-

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

agenda and supported UK intervention in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. In some respects, the party was to the right of the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilizati ...

, advocating the abolition of the

welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the State (polity), state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal oppor ...

, sweeping changes to the taxation system, and the return of national service. It fought two

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

s and five seats in the 1970 general election, but only Donnelly polled a significant number of votes. The party wound up in April 1971 when Donnelly joined the Conservative Party, without even informing the Democratic Party's membership.

Election Results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Democratic Party (Uk, 1969) Defunct political parties in the United Kingdom Political parties established in 1969 1969 establishments in the United Kingdom Political parties disestablished in 1971 1971 disestablishments in the United Kingdom