European Left Alliance | A new start for Europe's left

The Centro de Congresso da Alfandega hall, located directly on the banks of the Douro River in beautiful Porto, is packed as the founding party conference of the European Alliance for the People and the Planet (ELA) begins on June 13. The Portuguese left-wing party Bloco de Izquierda, one of ELA's founding members, is hosting the meeting, which consists of an internal general assembly in the morning and an open one-and-a-half-day conference on Friday and Saturday. This is logical, as Bloco has been one of the driving forces behind the reshaping of the European Left. Long-time party leader Caterina Martins is one of the co-chairs of the new party, alongside Malin Björk of the Swedish Left Party, who is joining a European party for the first time. The relatively large number of Bloco party members who attended must still be reeling from the election defeat of May 18th, but the mood in Porto this weekend is good, and every now and then there is a real sense of optimism wafting through the halls of the Transport Museum.

In addition to representatives of ELA's seven founding parties and a few parties, such as the Norwegian Left Party, which is currently joining the alliance, guests from other parties and social movements from across Europe also attended. Vitali Dudin, for example, represents the Ukrainian organization Social Neruch. Unlike the European Left Party, ELA can only be joined by parties represented in national parliaments. The majority of member parties have members of the European Parliament who work together in The Left's parliamentary group. However, thanks to the numerous guests from small alliances or parties, primarily from Central and Southeastern European countries, ELA nevertheless presents itself as broadly positioned. Janis Ehling, the federal director of The Left, also delivered a short but remarkable speech in the opening session, in which he pointed out, with reference to the split between the BSW and The Left, that divisions can sometimes be necessary for survival.

The party congress marks the provisional end of a long process. The seven European parties – the majority of whom were previously members of the European Left Party – registered the new party last year and prepared its political orientation. The leaders of their member parties met for the first time in Porto. The density of party celebrities is striking. All parties are represented at least at the level of general secretary, and most are also represented by their party leaders. In the well-planned public part of the congress, all of them speak, painting a surprisingly unified picture of their vision of connecting their national political struggles and cooperating at the political level. The topics addressed are no surprise. The new European party is pro-Ukrainian, even if its position on arms deliveries varies. It is absolutely pro-Palestinian. In her presentation, Finnish European politician Li Andersson underscored the importance of international law for the alliance's direction. The workshops otherwise revolved around the classic repertoire of left-wing conferences.

Some of the players, however, presented themselves surprisingly strongly. First and foremost, Secretary General Adrian Bompart and Vice President of the French Parliament Clémence Guetté, both of La France insoumise. The speeches by Spanish Podemos politician Irene Montero and Bloco chairwoman Marina Mortagua were also fiery. It also became clear that the new European left-wing party is young, feminist, and action-oriented. Everyone agreed that they wanted fewer resolutions and more joint activities. The chances that ELA will be able to deliver on this promise are not bad, as coordination, particularly within the group in the EP, is already working quite well. Whether more political rifts will emerge over time, or whether leadership demands within the party and its foundation, which is currently being established, will pose major challenges for the new alliance, remains to be seen.