Czech Social Democratic Party

The Social Democratic Czechoslavonic party in Austria (Czech: Sociálně Demokratická strana Českoslovanská v Rakousku) was a political group founded on 7 April 1878 in Austria-Hungary as a regional wing of the Social Democratic Party of Austria. Founded in Břevnov atop earlier social democratic initiatives, such as the Ouls, it represented much of the Kingdom of Bohemia in the Austrian parliament, and its significant role in the political life of the empire was one of the factors that led to the creation of an independent Czechoslovakia. After the collapse of Austria-Hungary at the end of the First World War, the party became one of the leading parties of the first Czechoslovak Republic. Its members were split over whether to join the Comintern, which in 1921 resulted in the fracturing of the party, with a large part of its membership then forming the new Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.

CSSD Membership card, 1945

During the occupation of Czechoslovakia by Nazi Germany, the party was officially abolished, but its members organized resistance movements contrary to the laws of the German-controlled Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, both at home and abroad. After the re-establishment of the Czechoslovak Republic in 1945, the party returned to its pre-war structure and became a member of the National Front which formed a new governing coalition. In 1948, after the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia gained a parliamentary majority, the Czech Social Democratic Party was incorporated into the Communist Party. At the time of the Prague Spring, a reformist movement in 1968, there were talks about allowing the recreation of a social democratic party, but Soviet intervention put an end to such ideas. It was only after the Velvet Revolution of 1989 that the party was recreated. Since the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, which came into effect on 1 January 1993, the ČSSD has been one of the major political parties of the Czech Republic, and until October 2017 was always one of the two parties with the largest number of seats in the Chamber of Deputies.

At the 1998 parliamentary election, the party won the largest number of seats but failed to form a coalition government, so formed a minority government under its leader Miloš Zeman. With only 74 seats out of 200, the government had confidence and supply from the Civic Democratic Party (ODS), under the so-called Opposition Agreement.

At the elections of 2002, the party gained 70 of the 200 seats in the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic. Its leader Vladimír Špidla became prime minister, heading a coalition with two small centre-right parties, the Christian and Democratic Union – Czechoslovak People's Party (KDU–ČSL) and the Freedom Union – Democratic Union (US-DEU) until he was forced to resign in 2004 after the ČSSD lost in the European Parliament elections of 2004

The next leader was Stanislav Gross, serving as leader from 26 June 2004 to 26 April 2005 and as prime minister from 4 August 2004 to 25 April 2005. He resigned after a scandal when he was unable to explain the source of money used to buy his house.

The successor of Gross as prime minister was Jiří Paroubek, while Bohuslav Sobotka became acting party leader from 26 April 2005 to 13 May 2006. Paroubek was then elected as the new party leader in the run-up to the June 2006 elections, at which the party won 32.3% of the vote and 74 out of 200 seats. The election at first caused a stalemate, since the centre-right parties plus the Green Party and the centre-left parties each had exactly 100 seats. The stalemate was broken when two ČSSD deputies, Miloš Melčák and Michal Pohanka, abstained during a vote of confidence, allowing a coalition of the Civic Democrats (ODS), the KDU-ČSL, and the Green Party to form a government. Hence the ČSSD went into opposition.

At the 2010 legislative elections on 28 and 29 May, the ČSSD gained 22.08% of the vote but remained the largest party, with 56 seats. Failing to form a governing coalition, it remained in opposition to a government coalition of the ODS, conservative TOP 09 and conservative-liberal Public Affairs parties. Paroubek resigned as leader on 7 June and was succeeded by Sobotka.

The Party remained the largest Party even after the 2013 legislative election of 25 and 26 October 2013 and in December formed a governing coalition with the populist ANO 2011 and the centrist Christian and Democratic Union – Czechoslovak People's Party.[10] The leader of ČSSD, Bohuslav Sobotka, became the new Prime Minister of the Czech Republic.

The party suffered heavy losses in the 2017 legislative election and was reduced to only 15 seats, the worst result in its history. ČSSD suffered another defeat in the Prague Municipal, local and Senate elections in 2018. ČSSD lost 12 senators (only one managed to win re-election), all Prague deputies and more than half of their local councillors. In 2019 ČSSD lost all their representatives in the European Parliament. Some political commentators have interpreted the string of poor results as a sign of ČSSD losing their position in national politics.[11] ČSSD suffered another defeat in 2020 Regional Elections and Senate elections, when they lost 10 senators (none re-elected) and 97 regional deputies.

In economic matters, the ČSSD party platform is typical of Western European social democratic parties. It supports a mixed economy, a strong welfare state, and progressive taxation.

In foreign policy it supports European integration, including joining the eurozone, and is critical of US foreign policy, especially when in opposition—though it does not oppose membership of the Czech Republic in NATO.

Former party leader Milos Zeman, now President of the Czech Republic

Czech lands as part of Austria-Hungary:

• 1878–1893 The Czechoslavonic Social Democratic Party in Austria (Sociálně-demokratická strana českoslovanská v Rakousku) – part of Social Democratic Party of Austria
• 1893–1918 The Czechoslavonic Social Democratic Workers' Party (Českoslovanská sociálně demokratická stranu dělnická) – independent party

Czechoslovakia:

• 1918–1938 The Czechoslovak Social Democratic Workers' Party (Československá sociálně demokratická strana dělnická) – merged with Slovak Social Democrats. The party was a member of the Labour and Socialist International between 1923 and 1938.[12] After the splitup of Austria-Hungary, the Czechoslovak Social Democratic Workers Party in the Republic of Austria split from the main party.
• 1938–1941 The National Labor Party (Národní strana práce) – united left party of Social Democrats and part of Czechoslovak National Socialist Party
• 1945–1948 Czechoslovak Social Democracy (Československá sociální demokracie)
• 1948–1989 – merged with the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, concurrently existed as an exile party with its headquarters in London
• 

  Former Party Leader and Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (on the right) and current Party leader and Interior Minister Jan Hamacek
  1990–1993 Czechoslovak Social Democracy (Československá sociální demokracie)

Czech Republic:

• since 1993 Czech Social Democratic Party (Česká strana sociálně demokratická)

ČSSD has following members of the government (2013–2017):

• Bohuslav Sobotka (Prime Minister)
• Milan Chovanec (Minister of Interior)
• Lubomír Zaorálek (Minister of Foreign Affairs)
• Michaela Marksová-Tominová (Minister of Labour and Social Affairs)
• Jan Mládek (Minister of Industry and Trade)
• Svatopluk Němeček (Minister of Health)
• Kateřina Valachová (Minister of Education, Youth and Sport)
• Jiří Dienstbier Jr. (Minister for Human Rights and Equal Opportunities)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Czech Social Democratic Party.

• Official website (in Czech)
• Party basic data in English