The Left (Germany)
|
The Left
Die Linke |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Chairperson |
Katja Kipping Bernd Riexinger |
| Founded | 16 June 2007 |
| Merger of |
PDS WASG Linksruck |
| Headquarters |
Karl-Liebknecht-Haus Kl. Alexanderstraße 28 D-10178 Berlin |
| Newspaper | Neues Deutschland |
| Think tank | Rosa Luxemburg Foundation |
| Student wing | Die Linke.SDS |
| Youth wing | Left Youth Solid |
| Membership (December 2015) |
 58,989 |
| Ideology |
Democratic socialism Left-wing populism Anti-capitalism Antimilitarism |
| Political position | Left-wing |
| European affiliation | Party of the European Left |
| European Parliament group | European United Left–Nordic Green Left |
| Colors |
Purple (customary for election coverage) Red (official) |
| Bundestag |
64 / 630
|
| State Parliaments |
159 / 1,855
|
| European Parliament |
7 / 96
|
| Prime Ministers of States |
1 / 16
|
| Website | |
| www |
|
The Left (German: Die Linke), also commonly referred to as the Left Party (German: Linkspartei), is a democratic socialist and left-wing populistpolitical party in Germany. The party was founded in 2007 as the merger of the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS) and the Electoral Alternative for Labour and Social Justice (WASG).
Since mid-2012, its co-chairs have been Katja Kipping and Bernd Riexinger. In the Bundestag the party has 64 out of 630 seats after polling 8.6% of the vote in the 2013 federal elections. Its parliamentary group is therefore the third largest among the four groups in the German Bundestag, and the leading opposition group. The Left is a founder member of the Party of the European Left, and is the largest party in the European United Left–Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL) group in the European Parliament.
The party is the most left-wing party of the four represented in the Bundestag, and has been called far-left by German government authorities and different international media. Some of its internal factions are under observation by some states' or the federal Verfassungsschutz (constitutional protection) authorities on account of suspected extremist tendencies. In Bavaria, the entire party is under surveillance.
According to official party figures, the Left Party had 63,784 registered members as of December 2013, making it the fourth-largest party in Germany.
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