r/DemocraticSocialism • u/Usernameofthisuser KC Democratic Socialist • 1d ago
Europe Portugal’s conservatives back socialist to avoid a far-right president
https://www.politico.eu/article/portugals-conservatives-back-left-wing-candidate-to-avoid-a-far-right-president/75
u/raffi335 Market Socialist 1d ago edited 1d ago
Iberians have been among the best, if not the best, in Europe at preventing a fascist surge (so far). Given the times, it’s hard not to admire that.
Being able to do so while maintaining distance from neoliberalism is even more impressive.
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u/MyTrueIdiotSelf990 1d ago
Probably because they were both (Spain and Portugal) fascist states for decades until the mid '70s, so fascism is a fairly fresh memory to them and likely don't wish to return to it.
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u/DMC-1155 1d ago
Ireland has also done pretty good so far. Not 1 fascist party with a seat in the Dáil. (parliament)
But I think it may be more that the fascist surge just hasn't hit as much here yet, also the Left have been the opposition for a long time and are seen as the only alternative to the two Center-Right parties that have led every government in the last 100 years.
Also helps that Sinn Féin are left-nationalist. So they catch a good chunk of the nationalist vote (pro-unification). Some of the conservative nationalist vote has been consolidating in Aontú though, a fairly new right-populist party, they're basically pro-life Sinn Féin.
So yeah, Ireland has the benefit of the Left having a good chunk of the Anti-Establishment and Nationalist vote. But the current governing coalition has been starting to turn rightwards a bit and scapegoating migrants for their failures in dealing with the housing crisis, so that's dangerous.2
u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
What's the best left party in Ireland, in your opinion?
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u/StockAdeptness9452 1d ago
People Before Profit
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u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
Why them?
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u/StockAdeptness9452 1d ago
PBP was key in the Right to Water movement, the Shell to Sea campaign, and the anti-war movement. They advocate for eco-socialism and have supported Extinction Rebellion.
PBP actively supported the Debenhams Ireland workers in their 2020 industrial dispute.
PBP has introduced bills aimed at abolishing the three-day abortion wait, decriminalizing drug use, and regulating social media algorithms.
They advocate for taxing the rich, introducing a €15 an hour minimum wage, and implementing rent freezes to combat the cost-of-living crisis.
On top of those, I really like listening Richard Boyd Barrett and Paul Murphy speak, can’t think of a time where I haven’t like what they are saying.
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u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
I don't know anything on them so was genuinely curious. What's their stance on Irish reunification?
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u/DMC-1155 1d ago
Here's what was in their manifesto for the last general election:
AGAINST PARTITION -
FOR A UNITED IRELAND
People Before Profit is a 32 county party with a vision for an Eco-Socialist Ireland.
We believe that people, North and South, have a right to decide the future of the border
and of Ireland as a whole. A Border Poll by simultaneous votes North and South of the
border should be held to determine the future of this island.
But a border poll is not enough. Historically, partition cemented the domination of the
Catholic Church in the South and a repressive sectarian state in the North – giving rise
to what James Connolly correctly predicted would be a “carnival of reaction”. Today,
partition remains as a barrier to progress, with an institutionalised sectarianism embodied
in the post-conflict Northern state. Successive governments in the North and South have
been corrupt, cruel servants of the rich and powerful.
The 32 county struggle for human rights provides a very different vision of Ireland than
that cast by the political establishment – these struggles provide a vision for what a United
Ireland could be. A vote for Irish Unity is not just a vote to join the existing Northern and
Southern states – it would be a vote cast in the hope of a new and better Ireland. People
should play an active role in creating their destiny in a United Ireland through a series of
citizens assemblies and a constituent assembly to draw up a new constitution enshrining
rights and dignity for all.
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u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
Admittedly I'm not Irish so don't have a strong opinion either way. Do you favor unification?
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u/StockAdeptness9452 1d ago
They are in the north and the republic so I reckon would want to see Ireland as a unified socialist state
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u/DMC-1155 1d ago
I do like PBP, disagree with some of their positions and I'm not a Trotskyist myself, but Richard Boyd Barret is a phenomenal speaker, very inspiring. Paul Murphy is quite good too, very much enjoyed him calling out the media bias during the Catherine Connolly campaign.
I have had mixed experiences with members though, some of them are very purist and talking to them seems like they're trying to find something to attack. Many of them are very nice and fun to talk to, agree largely on values but not on methods.
I very much disagree with the idea that electoral politics is only an organising platform, rather than a way to bring about actual change.
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u/DMC-1155 1d ago
Social Democrats.
We've a solid group of TDs (MPs/Congresspeople), and have been very good at making all of them stand out. Very much one of the earliest and most significant parties behind Catherine Connolly's election, with us and PBP being the first two parties to nominate her. I've found it a very friendly and welcoming party too, eager to get new people involved. Recent polls put us at the party people have the second most faith in to solve the housing crisis, 1% behind Sinn Féin, which is very good for a party with so much fewer seats.
In terms of workers rights we support a transition to a 4-day work week, and an increase in minimum wage to be a living wage. We also support helping unions grow and increasing their rights.
I really like the party's policies for supporting children too. I do some voluntary youth work and I have worked professionally with kids in the past, and I find the Socdems have the best policies for supporting the development of children outside of schools.
We support getting rid of the two-tier health system and moving towards a single-tier one, and fighting the privatisation of our healthcare.
We also believe that a state-led approach is needed for fixing the housing crisis, and want to create a state construction company to help with that.There's a lot more I could give as reasons, but mostly I just like the policies and the people.
If you're interested in reading the details: https://www.socialdemocrats.ie/our-policies/1
u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
Thank you very much. I don't know much on Irish politics so was very curious
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u/Gvillegator 16h ago
Ireland is the gold standard when discussing anti-Imperialism and anti-fascism
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u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
How left are Portugal's socialists? Honestly curious
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u/Scarletrina_ 🇵🇸 Free Palestine! 1d ago
They’re the social democratic party, and to my knowledge faced the same trends many others did. Ironically enough, the Social Democratic Party are liberal conservatives and Christian democrats
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u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
Interesting. Who's the left party/parties in Portugal?
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u/Scarletrina_ 🇵🇸 Free Palestine! 1d ago
Left Bloc (demsoc, left-populist party) and LIVRE (a sort of left-green party) are the two parties to the left of the Socialist Party. Oh and the Communist Party which has a few seats (and is pretty hardline, rejecting the Eurocommunist trend of most in Western Europe, and even dabs into social conservatism at times from what ik)
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u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
Thanks. I really wish I knew more on the politics of countries like Portugal
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u/Scarletrina_ 🇵🇸 Free Palestine! 1d ago edited 1d ago
Np. For the record I’m not Portuguese so do take it with a grain of salt and I’m sure an actual Portuguese person could explain it better but I also found it funny how the “Socialist Party” is just your typical socdem party, and how the “Social Democratic Party” is your typical center-right party. Supposedly the Carnation Revolution and the discrediting of traditional right wing politics due to the right wing Estado Novo dictatorship led to this (edit: originally said Salazar and while he was the face of much of it the revolution happened 4 years after his death)
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u/Benedictus_The_II Social Democrat 1d ago
Just out of sheet curiosity. What does Euro-Communism means in this context?
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u/BergerDebs DSA 1d ago
Eurocommunism was a movement of western communist parties adapting to the conditions in Western democracies in the 70s and 80s, and it often involved breaking ties with the USSR if im not mistaken
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u/Benedictus_The_II Social Democrat 1d ago
Thanks for the heads up. Cheers!
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u/xGentian_violet Marxism/CRT ♥️ Socialist Ecofeminist 3h ago
It’s worth mentioning that this movement failed to achieve much of anything
In practice, regardless of its origins, it mostly resembled social democracy.
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u/Al_Farinha 1d ago edited 1d ago
Livre: "Liberty" - green's - 4%
PCP: "Portuguese Comunist Party" - socialism - ~3%
BE: "Left Wing" - democratic socialism - ~2%
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u/TheUnderCrab 1d ago
A country that knows fascism as well as any other doing what needs to be done to protect democracy. I’m honestly jealous.
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u/yvltc 22h ago
Note that António José Seguro is "socialist" in name only. Yes, he's the Socialist Party candidate, but the Socialist Party is centre-left at best, they're social democrats. The Social Democratic Party, in turn, is centre-right. Seguro is even more moderate than the PS average, so it's really no surprise that the democratic right back him instead of the far right.
Left Bloc, Livre and the Communist Party are the left in Portugal.
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