Socialist Party (Italy)

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Socialist Party
Secretary	Riccardo Nencini
President	Pia Elda Locatelli
Coordinator	Marco Di Lello
Founded	5 October 2007
Headquarters	piazza S. Lorenzo in Lucina, 26 00186 Rome
Newspaper	MondOperaio
Membership	unknown
Ideology	Social democracy
Coalition	Left and Freedom
International	Socialist International
European party	Party of European Socialists
European Parliament Group	Party of European Socialists (2007–2009)
Website	http://www.partitosocialista.it

The Socialist Party (Partito Socialista, PS) is a social-democratic political party in Italy.

The party was founded in 2007–2008 by the merger of six minor social-democratic parties and associations: the Italian Democratic Socialists, Democracy and Socialism, the The Italian Socialists, the Socialist Party–De Michelis, the Association for the Rose in the Fist and Socialism is Freedom.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Foundation 1.2 Out of Parliament 2 Popular support 3 Leadership 4 References 5 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Foundation

A merger of all the former social-democratic parties in Italy was initially proposed by Enrico Boselli during the congress of the Italian Democratic Socialists (SDI) in April 2007. In that occasion the party decided not to join the Democratic Party and asked other parties to join them in a "Socialist Constituent Assembly" (Costituente Socialista) aimed at creating a new social-democratic party inspired to the late Italian Socialist Party (PSI).

Some minor parties and associations, including The Italian Socialists of Bobo Craxi, Socialism is Freedom led by Rino Formica and the Association for the Rose in the Fist of Lanfranco Turci joined enthusiastically to the proposal by Enrico Boselli. In June 2007 the New Italian Socialist Party (NPSI) split in two groups: the first, led by Stefano Caldoro, opted to stay within the House of Freedoms; the second, led by Gianni De Michelis, agreed to join the Constituent Assembly instead. The former retained the NPSI identity, while the latter formed the Socialist Party–De Michelis.

At its foundation in October 2007 the PS was joined also by Gavino Angius, Franco Grillini and Valdo Spini (all three former Democrats of the Left who had joined the Democratic Left through Democracy and Socialism), Roberto Barbieri, he himself a former Democrat of the Left, Cinzia Dato, who had recently left Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy (DL), and Luigi Angeletti, trade unionist and national secretary of the Italian Labour Union (UIL).

In the 2008 general election the Socialist Party stood alone outside of any alliance with other parties with Boselli as candidate for Prime Minister.^[1] In the election, the Socialist Party gained less than 1% of the vote and failed to win any seats in the Italian Parliament.

[edit] Out of Parliament

At the first congress of the party, that took place on 4–6 July 2008, Riccardo Nencini was elected secretary, replacing Boselli, while Pia Elda Locatelli was elected president.^[2] In September Nencini, proposed a new "reformist axis" comprising the Democratic Party, the Union of Christian and Centre Democrats and the Socialists, while explaining that the Democrats needed to chose between the reformism of the PS and the populism of Italy of Values, with which the Socialists reject any alliance for now.^[3]

In October 2008 Angius and his group abandoned the PS in order to join the PD, proposing that the whole party should follow him.^[4][5][6][7] In reply Nencini underlined how those leaving the party were not former member of the PSI and that "no Socialist is leaving the PS" as Spini, the only former Socialist in the group, chose to stay in the PS.^[8] In the meantime, as Parliament is discussing a new electoral law for European Parliament elections including a 5% threshold, the PS signed a pact with the PD in order to present some candidates in the PD list for the 2009 election.^[9]

However, as the PD finally supported the introduction of a 4% threshold in European Parliament elections, on 16 March 2009 the PS formed a joint electoral list named Left and Freedom with the Movement for the Left, the Federation of the Greens, the Democratic Left and Unite the Left.^[10] The list received just 3.1% of the national vote and failed to return any MEPs.

[edit] Popular support

Similarly to its precursor parties, the PS has its strongholds in Southern Italy. In the 2008 general election it won 2.0% in Calabria (2.8% for the Senate), 2.8% in Basilicata, 1.6% in Apulia and a surprising 1.8% in Umbria.

[edit] Leadership

• Secretary: Enrico Boselli (2007–2008), Riccardo Nencini (2008–...)
  • Coordinator: Marco Di Lello (2008–...)
• President: Pia Elda Locatelli (2008–...)

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official website

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