Social Alliance Przymierze Społeczne | |
---|---|
Abbreviation | PS |
Leaders | |
Founded | 27 June 1998[1] |
Dissolved | 23 September 2001[2] |
Headquarters | Słupsk, Poland[3] |
Membership (1998) | 65,000[4] |
Ideology | |
Political position | Left-wing[6] |
Members | |
Allies | Democratic Left Alliance[7] Polish Socialist Party[8] Solidarność '80[2] |
Colors | Navy blue Green |
Slogan | Together we can do it Polish: Razem damy radę Balcerowicz-year's dud Polish: Balcerowicz-bubel roku |
The Social Alliance was an electoral coalition created for the 1998 Polish local elections. Formed on 27 June 1998, the Social Alliance included the Polish People's Party along with its smaller left-oriented party partners, such as the Labour Union, the National Party of Retirees and Pensioners, the Self-Defence of the Republic of Poland[9] and few members of Alliance of Democrats (Poland). The party represented the "independent left" that challenged the anti-communist and pro-communist dichotomy of Polish politics while maintaining a strongly leftist profile inspired by pre-WW2 socialist and agrarian movements.[5] It protested against the capitalist reforms carried out in Poland such as austerity, criticizing them for creating massive wealth inequality.[2] Nevertheless, the coalition cooperated with the post-communist Democratic Left Alliance as well as the Polish Socialist Party.[8]
Despite ideological disputes between coalition members, in particular between the Eurosceptic Samoobrona and the pro-EU Labour Union, as well as funding gap, the Social Alliance was well-received and achieved a good result.[10] With its anti-capitalist program, the coalition obtained 89 seats in provincial voivodeship sejmiks (12,04%) and 4,583 powiat and gmina councillor seats. Despite its success, the coalition was short-lived and was dissolved on the day of the 2001 Polish parliamentary election.[2] Nevertheless, the coalition is credited with successfully challenging the dichotomy of 1990s Polish politics, and became an inspiration for similar coalition concepts, such as the "Workers' and Peasants' Alliance" between Polish Socialist Party and Samoobrona, or an 'All-Agrarian Coalition' composed of Polish People's Party, Samoobrona and rural trade unions.[8]
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