United Left (Spain)

United Left
General Coordinator Cayo Lara Moya
Founded April 1986
Merger of Communist Party of Spain
Communist Youth Union of Spain
Collective for the Unity of Workers – Andalusian Left Bloc
Republican Left (part)
Revolutionary Workers' Party
Open Left
Electoral fusion with:
Initiative for Catalonia Greens
Chunta Aragonesista
Membership 71,578
Ideology Communism[1][2]
Democratic socialism
Republicanism[1]
Environmentalism[1]
Federalism
Political position Left-wing[1]
European affiliation Party of the European Left
European Parliament group European United Left–Nordic Green Left
Colours      Dark red
     Green
Congress of Deputies
11 / 350
Spanish Senate
2 / 266
European Parliament
4 / 54
Regional Parliaments
54 / 1,268
Local Government (2011)
2,248 / 68,230
Website
www.izquierda-unida.es
Politics of Spain
Political parties
Elections

United Left (Spanish: Izquierda Unida [iθˈkjerða uˈniða], IU) is a political coalition that was organized in 1986 bringing together several left-wing political organisations.[3]

IU was originally founded as an electoral coalition of seven parties, but currently the Communist Party of Spain (PCE) is the only integrated member of the IU at the national level.[3] Despite that, IU brings together other regional parties, political organizations, and independents.[3]

Congress seats from 1977 (as PCE) to 2011

History

Julio Anguita, general coordinator of United Left from 1989 to 1999.

Following the electoral failure of the PCE in 1982 (from 10% to 4%), PCE leaders believed that the PCE alone could no longer effectively challenge the electoral hegemony of the PSOE on the left.[3] With this premise, the PCE began developing closer relations with other left-wing groups, with the vision of forming a broad left coalition.[3] IU slowly improved its results, reaching 9% in 1989 (1,800,000 votes) and nearly 11% in 1996 (2,600,000 votes).

In contrast to the PCE prior to the formation of IU, which pursued a more moderate political course, the new IU adopted a more radical strategy and ideology of confrontation against the PSOE.[2][3] IU generally opposed cooperating with the PSOE, and identified it as a "right-wing party", no different from the PP.[2][3]

After achieving poor results in the 1999 local and European elections, IU decided to adopt a more conciliatory attitude towards the PSOE, and agreed to sign an electoral pact with the PSOE for the upcoming general election in 2000.[3] They also adopted a universal policy in favor of cooperating with the PSOE at local level.[3]

Following the election of Cayo Lara as leader in 2008, however, the party has shifted back towards a more confrontational attitude towards the PSOE.

IU currently has around 70,000 members.[4]

Federations of IU

Leaders

Name Period Notes
Gerardo Iglesias 1986
Julio Anguita 1986–99
Francisco Frutos 1999-2001
Gaspar Llamazares 2001–08
Cayo Lara 2008–present

Election results

IU has its strongest base of support in Andalusia, Madrid, and Asturias, tracing the communist base of the PCE.[3] However, the IU has also gained electoral support in regions the PCE never did, such as Castile and León, and the Basque Country.[3]

Congress of Deputies

Congress of Deputies
Election Leader Size Votes % Seats ± Position
1986 Gerardo Iglesias 5th 935,504 4.6
7 / 350
 Minor opposition
1989 Julio Anguita 3rd 1,858,588 9.1
17 / 350
 Increase10 Minor opposition
1993 Julio Anguita 3rd 2,253,722 9.6
18 / 350
 Increase1 Minor opposition
1996 Julio Anguita 3rd 2,639,774 10.5
21 / 350
 Increase3 Minor opposition
2000 Francisco Frutos 3rd 1,263,043 5.5
8 / 350
 Decrease13 Minor opposition
2004 Gaspar Llamazares 3rd 1,284,081 5.0
5 / 350
 Decrease3 Minor opposition
2008 Gaspar Llamazares 3rd 969,946 3.8
2 / 350
 Decrease3 Minor opposition
2011 Cayo Lara 3rd 1,686,040 6.9
11 / 350
 Increase9 Minor opposition

European Parliament

European Parliament
Election Candidate Size Votes % Seats ±
1987 Fernando Pérez Royo 4th 1,011,830 5.3
3 / 60
1989 Fernando Pérez Royo 4th 961,742 6.1
4 / 60
 Increase1
1994 Alonso Puerta 3rd 2,497,671 13.4
9 / 64
 Increase5
1999 Alonso Puerta 3rd 1,221,566 5.8
4 / 64
 Decrease5
2004 Willy Meyer 4th 643,136 4.2
2 / 54
 Decrease2
2009 Willy Meyer 4th 588,248 3.7
2 / 54
 ±0
2014 Willy Meyer 3rd 1,575,3081 10.0
4 / 54
 Increase2

1 Within Plural Left.

Local councils

Local councils
Election Leader Size Votes % Seats ±
1987 Gerardo Iglesias 4th 1,399,364 7.2
2,315 / 65,577
1991 Julio Anguita 3rd 1,579,097 8.4
2,614 / 66,308
 Increase299
1995 Julio Anguita 3rd 2,589,780 11.7
3,493 / 65,869
 Increase879
1999 Julio Anguita 3rd 1,387,900 6.5
2,295 / 65,201
 Decrease1,198
2003 Gaspar Llamazares 3rd 1,394,871 6.1
2,198 / 65,510
 Decrease97
2007 Gaspar Llamazares 3rd 1,217,030 5.5
2,034 / 66,131
 Decrease164
2011 Cayo Lara 3rd 1,437,061 6.4
2,249 / 68,230
 Increase215

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "European Social Survey 2012 - Appendix 3 (in English)" (PDF). European Science Foundation. 1 January 2014. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Topaloff, L (2012) Political Parties and Euroscepticism, pp192-193
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 "Electoral incentives and organisational limits. The evolution of the Communist Party of Spain (PCE) and the United Left (IU) (in English)" (PDF). Institute of Political and Social Sciences. 2002. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
  4. ↑ Entre coalición y partido, la evolución de modelo organizativo en IU, Luis Ramiro
  5. ↑ Following the tradition of the Spanish left since the formation of the Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia (PSUC) in 1936 (when communists and socialists joined forces in Catalunya), IU doesn't have any organization of its own in Catalonia. Until 1998 the referent of IU in Catalonia was Initiative for Catalonia (Iniciativa per Catalunya, now known as IC-V). But IC eventually broke relations with IU. A split in PSUC followed and a new Catalonian alliance, United and Alternative Left (Esquerra Unida i Alternativa, EUiA) was formed as the new Catalonian referent of IU.

External links

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