List of political groups by country

This is a list of political groups by country. A political group, also known as a political alliance, coalition or bloc, is cooperation by members of different political parties on a common agenda. This usually involves formal agreements between two or more entire parties. A political group is usually especially beneficial to the parties concerned during and immediately after elections – due to characteristics of the electoral systems concerned (e.g. allowing each party to clear electoral thresholds) and/or allowing parties to participate in the formation of a government after elections. These may break up quickly or hold together for decades, becoming the de facto norm, operating almost as a single unit. Political groups may also form prior to elections to reduce uncertainty following the election.^[1]

Coalition governments are formed when a political group comes to power or when only a plurality (not a majority) has been reached, and several parties must work together to govern. One of the peculiarities of such a method of governance results in a minister without portfolio.^{[citation needed]}

Political groups by country

Australia

Since the 1920s, the main centre-right force in Australian politics at the federal level has been an alliance of parties known as the Coalition: originally consisting of the Nationalist Party and the Australian Country Party, it currently includes those parties' successors, the Liberal Party of Australia and the National Party of Australia. The Coalition's formation was prompted by the rise of the centre-left Australian Labor Party, which remains the Coalition's main political opponent. The two parties of the Coalition draw support from different bases, with the Liberals gaining their votes in urban areas and the Nationals winning theirs in rural areas. Arrangements at state and territorial level vary, from the merger of state Liberal and National parties through to electoral alliances on the federal model and, in the case of Western Australia, a looser relationship. Their had been short breakups in 1972 and 2025. Additionally, in the 1934 and 1987 federal elections (following the Joh for PM campaign), the coalition ran separately for both House of Representatives and the Senate.

Bulgaria

The Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) and other leftist parties in Bulgaria have been members of the leftist electoral alliance Coalition for Bulgaria since 1991.

In Bulgaria, the so-called "blue parties"^[2] or "urban right"^[3] formed different alliances including United Democratic Forces (1997–2005), Blue Coalition (2008–12) Reformist Bloc (2013–16/17) and Democratic Bulgaria (2018–23).

Germany

The Christian Democratic Union of Germany does not contest elections in Bavaria, where its place is taken by the somewhat more conservative and Catholic-influenced Christian Social Union. They form a common CDU/CSU bloc in the Bundestag. According to the parliamentary law only parties which share a common ideology and do not compete in the same state are allowed to form a joint Fraktion,^[4] conditions only applying to CDU/CSU. Only in 1976, the coalition broke for less than a month.^[5]

Between the 1980s and the 2010s, Germany was dominated by two blocs, the Black–yellow coalition [de] composed of the Union and Free Democratic Party and the Red–green coalition composed of the Social Democratic Party and The Greens. In 2002, FDP nominated their own chancellor candidate against the candidates of SPD and CDU before returning to the alliance with the CDU/CSU. This was the first and only election before 2021 to have three candidates.^[6]

Hong Kong

The Hong Kong pro-democracy camp has been establishing an electoral coalition in local level elections. Unless there is a coordination failure, the parties within the camp will not contest against each other in local level elections. In the coming General Election, they also launch primaries to ensure the greatest coordination and thus greatest possible number of seats, at best simple majority (35+) can be achieved.

Hungary

The Christian Democratic People's Party is the coalition partner of the ruling party Fidesz, and has run with Fidesz on a joint electoral list in elections since 2006. However, over time the party has lost popular support to the point it can no longer be measured in opinion polls, and today effectively operates as a satellite party of Fidesz, with the last time it got into parliament on its own being in 1994.

Israel

Since the 1977 Israeli legislative election, the nationalist and ultra-Orthodox parties form the National camp.

Liechtenstein

The two dominating likewise conservative parties Progressive Citizens' Party and Patriotic Union form a coalition which exists since 1938 with a short hiatus in 1997–2005.^[7]

New Zealand

ACT New Zealand, a right-wing libertarian party, runs its leader as a candidate in the Epsom electorate. In Epsom, the ACT leader is typically endorsed by the National Party and its leader. After the election, the ACT leader can then be offered a cabinet position, and the party can serve as a coalition partner in a National government.

Portugal

In Portugal, the Democratic Alliance is an alliance of three centre-right to right-wing parties: PSD, CDS-PP and PPM.^[8] It was based on the Democratic Alliance in 1979 and PSD and CDS-PP formed Força Portugal in 2004, the Portugal Alliance in 2014 and the Portugal Ahead alliance in 2015. There are also smaller alliances, such as the CDU.^[9]

Scandinavian countries

In multiple countries in Scandinavia, parties generally run in elections separately but cooperate with other parties of similar ideology and outlook, and are grouped together by media, commentators, and party members for the purposes of the formation of a coalition government: a "red" bloc of centre-left and left-wing parties, and a "blue" bloc of centre-right and right-wing parties. Parties almost always form coalition governments consisting of their particular bloc if they have a majority, with the largest party nominating the position of Prime Minister.

In the last years, there had been some changes. The Frederiksen II Cabinet formed in Denmark in 2022 includes both the "red" Social Democracy and the "blue" Venstre. In 2019, the Swedish Centre Party left the conservative Alliance and the other "blue" parties ended the cordon sanitaire against the far-right Sweden Democrats. Although the Faroe Islands and Finland traditionally do not have blocs, all governments were mostly along political lines since Cabinet of Kaj Leo Johannesen II in 2011 and the Sipilä cabinet in 2015 respectively.

United Kingdom

Labour Party

The Labour Party and Co-operative Party have an electoral agreement under which elections in some constituencies are contested by Co-operative Party members as joint candidates.

Northern Ireland

Two of the three largest national parties do not actively contest elections in Northern Ireland. The two Northern Irish parties that are affiliated with parties that compete in the rest of the UK are the Social Democratic and Labour Party with Labour, and the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland with the Liberal Democrats. The Conservative Party runs candidates in Northern Ireland but used to support the Ulster Unionist Party.

Other countries

Argentina: Juntos por el Cambio, Workers' Left Front – Unity, La Libertad Avanza, Union for the Homeland
Armenia: Civil Contract
Bolivia: Civic Community, Creemos
Chile: Chile Vamos, New Deal, Broad Front, Chile Digno
Croatia: Rivers of Justice
Gibraltar: GSLP–Liberal Alliance
India: National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA)
Ireland: People Before Profit–Solidarity
Italy: Centre-left coalition, Centre-right coalition, Greens and Left Alliance
Latvia: Union of Greens and Farmers
Lebanon: March 8 Alliance, March 14 Alliance
Malaysia: Alliance of Hope (PH), Barisan Nasional (BN), Perikatan Nasional (PN), Gabungan Rakyat Sabah Party (GRS), Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS)
Poland: The Left
Serbia: Serbia Must Not Stop
Republic of China/Taiwan: Pan-Blue Coalition, Pan-Green Coalition

Defunct political groups

References

^ Bergman, Matthew Edward (4 May 2020). "Sorting between and within coalitions: the Italian case (2001–2008)". Italian Political Science Review / Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica. 51: 42–66. doi:10.1017/ipo.2020.12. ISSN 0048-8402.
^ "Prowestliche Parteien sind Bulgariens große Wahlverlierer". Weser-Kurier. 28 March 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
^ "Bulgaria election: All you need to know about country's fourth vote in just 18 months Access to the comments". Euronews. 2 October 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
^ Geschäftsordnung des Deutschen Bundestages (in German). Bundestag. 25 June 1980. Art. 10 sect. 1. Retrieved 19 June 2025.
^ "Wo Strauß die Revolte anzettelte". Bayerischer Rundfunk (in German). 1 September 2009.
^ "Drei Kanzlerkandidaten gab es schon einmal: Als Guido Westerwelle Schuhgröße 18 trug". Der Stern (in German). 24 September 2021.
^ Wilfried Marxer (31 December 2011). "Koalition". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.
^ "Democratic Alliance". ad2024.pt. Retrieved 2025-03-09.
^ DN, Redacao (2019-05-07). "Europeias: CDU defende "outro projeto" europeu, PS alerta que ideia "é muito perigosa"". Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2025-03-09.

[1] Bergman, Matthew Edward (4 May 2020). "Sorting between and within coalitions: the Italian case (2001–2008)". Italian Political Science Review / Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica. 51: 42–66. doi:10.1017/ipo.2020.12. ISSN 0048-8402.

[2] "Prowestliche Parteien sind Bulgariens große Wahlverlierer". Weser-Kurier. 28 March 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2022.

[3] "Bulgaria election: All you need to know about country's fourth vote in just 18 months Access to the comments". Euronews. 2 October 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2022.

[4] Geschäftsordnung des Deutschen Bundestages (in German). Bundestag. 25 June 1980. Art. 10 sect. 1. Retrieved 19 June 2025.

[5] "Wo Strauß die Revolte anzettelte". Bayerischer Rundfunk (in German). 1 September 2009.

[6] "Drei Kanzlerkandidaten gab es schon einmal: Als Guido Westerwelle Schuhgröße 18 trug". Der Stern (in German). 24 September 2021.

[7] Wilfried Marxer (31 December 2011). "Koalition". Historisches Lexikon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein.

[8] "Democratic Alliance". ad2024.pt. Retrieved 2025-03-09.

[9] DN, Redacao (2019-05-07). "Europeias: CDU defende "outro projeto" europeu, PS alerta que ideia "é muito perigosa"". Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2025-03-09.

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