The majority of major local or national political parties in Europe have aligned themselves into one of the pan-European political organizations.
13 of these pan-European organizations have been legally recognized by the European Union as political parties at the European level:[ citation needed ]
As of February 2020 [update] , there are 10 registered Europarties [1]
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In October 2014, the regulation (EU, EURATOM) No 1141/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations lays down the conditions governing the statute and funding of political parties at European level ('European political parties') and political foundations at European level ('European political foundations'). Chapters of this regulations focus on status, funding, control and sanctions. [4]
The Nordic Green Left Alliance is a transnational federation of parties, not a pan-European political party per se, but it articulates a broadly uniform ideology and its membership is exclusive to it. As such, it is treated akin to one here.
Parties represented in national parliaments or the European Parliament are generally included in the below chart, while independents have been omitted. Great ideological diversity can be found in most pan-European organizations, and individual country rows may not correspond with the heuristic left-right spectrum commonly used within its own political discourse.
EPP | S&D (PES) | RE | GUE/NGL | Greens-EFA | ECR | ID | Non-Inscrits |
EPP | PES | ALDE |
ECG | EUL | Non-Attached |
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union, it adopts European legislation, following a proposal by the European Commission. The Parliament is composed of 720 members (MEPs), after the June 2024 European elections, from a previous 705 MEPs. It represents the second-largest democratic electorate in the world, with an electorate of around 375 million eligible voters in 2024.
The European Free Alliance (EFA) is a European political party that consists of various regionalist, separatist and minority political parties in Europe. Member parties advocate either for full political independence and sovereignty, or some form of devolution or self-governance for their country or region. The party has generally limited its membership to centre-left and left-wing parties; therefore, only a fraction of European regionalist parties are members of the EFA.
The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party is a European political party composed of 76 national-level parties from across Europe, mainly active in the European Union. The ALDE Party is affiliated with Liberal International and a recognised European political party, incorporated as a non-profit association under Belgian law.
The president of the European Commission, also known as president of the College of Commissioners or prime commissioner, is the head of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU). The president of the commission leads a cabinet of commissioners, referred to as the college. The president is empowered to allocate portfolios among, reshuffle, or dismiss commissioners as necessary. The college directs the commission's civil service, sets the policy agenda and determines the legislative proposals it produces. The commission is the only body that can propose, or draft, bills to become EU laws.
The European Green Party (EGP), also referred to as European Greens, is a transnational, European political party representing national parties from across Europe who share Green values.
The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian democratic, liberal-conservative, and conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties. Founded by primarily Christian-democratic parties in 1976, it has since broadened its membership to include liberal-conservative parties and parties with other centre-right political perspectives. On 31 May 2022, the party elected as its President Manfred Weber, who was also EPP's Spitzenkandidat in 2019.
A European political party, known formally as a political party at European level and informally as a Europarty, is a type of political party organisation operating transnationally in Europe and within the institutions of the European Union (EU). They are regulated and funded by EU Regulation 1141/2014 on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations, and their operations are supervised by the Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations (APPF).
Elections to the European Parliament take place every five years by universal adult suffrage; with more than 400 million people eligible to vote, they are the second largest democratic elections in the world after India's.
Malta elects on a national level 6 MEPs representing Malta in the European Parliament, on a district level the legislature, on a local level the local councils, and on a community level the Administrative Committees.
The European Christian Political Movement (ECPM) is a European political party exclusively working on promoting Christian values. The party unites national parties and individuals from across Europe who share policies influenced by Christianity, largely following the ideals of Christian democracy. The member parties are generally socially conservative and Eurosceptic.
Europeans United for Democracy – Alliance for a Europe of Democracies, formerly known as EUDemocrats, was a Eurosceptic and self-described Eurorealist alliance of parties and movements from 15 European countries. It operated as a transnational party at the European level, according to Regulation (EC) No 2004/2003. It sought a radical decentralization or a complete abolition of the EU. It incorporated members from both the right and the left political spectrum; however, it was dominated by left-wing parties and represented ideologically left-wing faction of Euroscepticism. It functioned between 2005 and 2017.
Identity, Tradition, Sovereignty was a far-right political group that operated in the European Parliament between January and November 2007. It was composed of 23 MEPs and only existed during the European Parliament's 6th term. While a common political charter for the ITS was signed on 9 January 2007, the ITS was recognised as a political group on 15 January by parliamentary president Josep Borrell.
The national parliaments of the European Union are those legislatures responsible for each member state of the European Union (EU). They have a certain degree of institutionalised influence which was expanded under the Treaty of Lisbon to include greater ability to scrutinise proposed European Union law.
A European political foundation, known formally as a political foundation at European level and informally as a European foundation, is a type of political foundation affiliated to, but independent from, a European party and operating transnationally in the European Union (EU). They are regulated and funded by EU Regulation 1141/2014 on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations, and their operations are supervised by the Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations (APPF). European political foundations carry specific political activities and are networks of national political foundations.
The European Conservatives and Reformists Party, formerly known as Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists and Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe, is a conservative, soft Eurosceptic European political party with a main focus on reforming the European Union (EU) on the basis of Eurorealism, as opposed to total rejection of the EU (anti-EU-ism).
VMRO – Bulgarian National Movement, commonly known as VMRO, is a national conservative political party in Bulgaria.
Robert Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz is a Polish politician of the KORWiN who was elected in May 2014 as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP).
Patriots.eu, formerly known as the Identity and Democracy Party (ID) and the Movement for a Europe of Nations and Freedom (MENF), is a nationalist, right-wing populist and Eurosceptic European political party founded in 2014. Its Members of the European Parliament sat in the Europe of Nations and Freedom group from 2015 to 2019, then in the Identity and Democracy group between 2019 and 2024; following the 2024 European Parliament election, most of its MEPs sit with the Patriots for Europe group.
Progressive Slovakia is a liberal and social-liberal political party in Slovakia established in 2017. The party is led by Michal Šimečka, a former Vice President of the European Parliament. It is a member of the Renew Europe group and is a full member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party. PS has three MEPs: Michal Šimečka, Martin Hojsík, and Michal Wiezik ; the latter left the EPP and Democrats to join PS.
The Funding of European political parties deals with public funding, political donations, and other forms of funding received by political parties operating transnationally in the European Union (EU) to pay for their activities. Parties operating transnationally in the EU are registered with the EU's Authority for European Political Parties and European Political Foundations (APPF). European political parties are publicly funded, both to actively support their operations and to limit the influence of private money on elections and on the shaping of public policy.