In France, the Gaullist Party is usually used to refer to the largest party professing to be Gaullist. Gaullism claimed to transcend the left/right rift (in a similar way to populist parties elsewhere such as Fianna Fáil in Ireland). The current Gaullist party is the Union for a Popular Movement.
Some personalities and voters defined themselves as "left-wing Gaullists" - a view often ascribed to leading Gaullist André Malraux. However, most of Charles de Gaulle's followers were conservative, and after his death, traditional left-wing voters ceased voting Gaullist and figures identified with the Gaullist left such as Jacques Chaban-Delmas were gradually marginalised. Under its various names and acronyms, the Gaullist Party has been the dominant organization of the French right since the beginning of the Fifth Republic (1958).
Read more about Gaullist Party: De Gaulle Vs The Parties (1944-1947), Gaullist Party and Fourth Republic: Opposition and Desert Crossing (1947-1958), Gaullist Party's Height (1958-1976), A Neo-Gaullist Party: The RPR (1976-2002), Secretaries General, Presidents of The RPR
Famous quotes containing the word party:
“What is the disease which manifests itself in an inability to leave a party—any party at all—until it is all over and the lights are being put out?... I suppose that part of this mania for staying is due to a fear that, if I go, something good will happen and I’ll miss it. Somebody might do card tricks, or shoot somebody else.”
—Robert Benchley (1889–1945)