Radical Party (France)

Radical Party (France)

The Radical Party (French: Parti radical, also Parti radical valoisien, abbreviated to Rad.) is a liberal and centrist political party in France. Following the French legislative elections of 2012, the Radicals have 6 seats in the National Assembly. Between 2002 and 2011 they were an associate party of the centre-right Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) and were represented on the Liaison Committee for the Presidential Majority, prior to launching the The Alliance (ARES).

Founded in 1901 as Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party (Parti républicain, radical et radical-socialiste), it is the oldest active political party in France. The Radicals were originally a left-wing group, but with the emergence of the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) in 1905, they shifted towards the centre. In 1972 the left wing of the party split off to form the centre-left Radical Party of the Left. Since then, the Radical Party has affiliated with the centre-right, becoming one of the founder parties of the Union for French Democracy (UDF) in 1978. In 2002 the party split from the UDF and affiliated with the UMP.

Coming from the Radical Republican tradition, the Radical Party upholds the principles of private property and secularism. In the European Parliament, along with the UMP, the three Radical MEPs sit with the European parliamentary group of the European People's Party (EPP). Since 2007, the Radical Party's leader has been Jean-Louis Borloo.