The Leftist Alliance is an alliance of Centre left political parties in the British Republic formed in the aftermath of the Little Anarchy.
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History[]
Formation and Early Years
In the aftermath of the little anarchy the various left wing parties in Britain formed an electoral alliance to strengthen the largely divided left wing of British politics. This alliance achieved a strong showing in the British Constituent Assembly Election as party of the democracy alliance and then came third in the British Republic general election, 1990 after which it entered government as the junior part of a coalition with the Social Liberal Party. Following the British Republic general election, 1995 the alliance was forced into opposition by the formation of a coalition between the Social Liberals and Conservatives.
Expansion and Splits
In the British Republic general election, 2000 (Fascist Coup Britain) the party reentered government at the head of a coalition with the Social Democrats, marking the first time the alliance was a leading member of a coalition as opposed to a junior one. The coalition with the SDP later led to the SDP merging with the alliance, however this led to the Greens and Worker's Party to withdraw from the alliance in protest of the increasingly centrist policies being pursued by the alliance. This split led to the 2003 British Constitutional Crisis in which the Leftist government was dismissed in the face of a no confidence motion. After several weeks of deadlock a snap election was held. In the British Republic general election, 2003 the alliance won the largest number of seats it has ever won in an election and was able to form a minority government for the during of the Parliament.
Back in Opposition
Despite its large victory in the 2003 general election the party suffered a large setback when a Liberal-Green coalition was voted into power in the British Republic general election, 2005 and the party spent the ensuing five years in opposition, marking the first time a government had failed to be reelected for a second term. However the alliance's fortunes changed following the resignation of two successive Prime Minister in two years as a result of disputes within the Social Liberal Party. The alliance was further strengthened by the late 2000's financial crisis which even further weakened the Liberal government as an election loomed.
In Government Again
Following the near collapse of the Liberals in the British Republic general election, 2010 the alliance reentered government in coalition with the Greens. Whilst the alliance has since been strengthened by the joining of the Left Liberal party, the party has also seen a decline in its support as a result of the aftermath of the financial crisis which helped bring it into power. The alliance has also had to contend with the rise of New Left which had drawn away many of the far left supporters of the alliance.
After 2015
In the 2015 general election the Leftist Alliance suffered its worst defeat in its history, winning it's lowest number of seats since the 1990 general election and its lowest vote share in its history. Following the defeat leader Jack Straw resigned as leader and many have called for fundamental reform of the alliance, with some even arguing for a merger of the parties within the alliance into a single party to present a fully united left.
2015 Leadership Election
Following the resignation of Jack Straw as leader the alliance held a leadership election which would prove to be highly contentious. Whilst Jeremy Corbyn won a clear plurality of the vote and seats in the electoral college, he failed to win a majority and as a result a second round had to be held. However, for the second round his opponents rallied around Hilary Benn as a unity candidate, giving Benn a majority in the electoral college despite not having been on the ballot paper. Benn's victory caused outrage amongst Corbyn supporters and led to the Socialist Party voting to withdraw from the alliance in a referendum of its membership.
Dissolution
At the beginning of 2016 Alliance leader Hilary Benn announced a referendum on the merger of the 4 remaining parties of the Leftist Alliance into a single party, whilst the move was supported by the Labour and Cooperative Parties it was heavily opposed by the Social Democratic and Left Liberal Parties. The referendum was ultimately passed by a narrow majority, and in the immediate aftermath both the Social Democratic and Left Liberal Parties announced that they would have no part of such a merger, citing the fact that both parties members decisively rejected the merger.
On the 3rd February 2016, the 26th Anniversary of the founding of the Alliance, the Leftist Alliance was dissolved to be replaced by an expanded Labour Party, a merger of the Labour and Cooperative Parties, whilst the Social Democratic Party left the Alliance and would ultimately pursue cooperation with the Social Liberal Party, whilst the Left Liberal Party would establish itself as an independent political party.
Members[]
The Leftist Alliance consists of five members which are the Labour Party, The Social Democratic Party, the Cooperative Party, the Left Liberal Party and the Socialist Party. Each party fields its own candidates, which all run under the Leftist Alliance banner, has its own leader and own membership.
Election Results[]
| Elections | Votes | Vote % | Seats | Outcome of Election |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 7,534,353 | 21.5 (#3) | {{Infobox political party/seats|120|700|#FF0800}} | Social Liberal-Leftist Alliance Coalition |
| 1995 | 10,205,503 | 31.3 (#2) | {{Infobox political party/seats|165|700|#FF0800}} | Social Liberal-Conservative Coalition |
| 2000 | 11,332,621 | 33.9 (#1) | {{Infobox political party/seats|290|700|#FF0800}} | Leftist Alliance-Social Democrat Coalition |
| 2003 | 11,132,943 | 35.5 (#1) | {{Infobox political party/seats|335|700|#FF0800}} | Leftist Alliance government in hung parliament |
| 2005 | 8,938,182 | 27.4 (#2) | {{Infobox political party/seats|198|700|#FF0800}} | Social Liberal government in hung parliament |
| 2010 | 12,848,291 | 36.8 (#1) | {{Infobox political party/seats|327|720|#FF0800}} | Leftist Alliance-Green Coalition |
| 2015 | 7,431,870 | 21.1 (#2) | {{Infobox political party/seats|122|720|#FF0800}} | Democratic Coalition victory |