Social Democrats (Slovenia) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Social Democrats Socialni demokrati
Abbreviation	SD
Leader	Matjaž Han
Founder	Ciril Ribičič
Founded	29 May 1993 (1993-05-29)
Preceded by	ZKS
Headquarters	Ljubljana
Youth wing	Youth Forum of Social Democrats
Membership (2013)	12,109
Ideology	Social democracy
Political position	Centre-left
European affiliation	Party of European Socialists
International affiliation	Progressive Alliance
European Parliament group	Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats
Colors	Red
National Assembly	7 / 90
European Parliament	2 / 8
Mayors	14 / 212
Municipal council	302 / 2,750
Party flag

The Social Democrats (in Slovenian: Socialni demokrati), often called SD, is a political party in Slovenia. It is known as a centre-left party, which means it supports ideas like social fairness, equality, and helping people in need. It is also a pro-European party, meaning it supports cooperation and closer ties with other European countries.

The party is currently led by Matjaž Han. From 1993 to 2005, it was known as the United List of Social Democrats. The SD party is a successor to the League of Communists of Slovenia. As of 2022, the Social Democrats are part of Slovenia's government, working with the Freedom Movement and The Left. They are also members of important international groups like the Party of European Socialists and the Progressive Alliance.

History of the Social Democrats

How the Party Started

The story of the Social Democrats began in 1989. At that time, the League of Communists of Slovenia decided to allow other political groups to exist. This was a big change, moving Slovenia towards a system with many different political ideas.

On January 23, 1990, the Slovenian Communists left the main Communist party of Yugoslavia. Soon after, on February 4, 1990, they changed their name to the League of Communists of Slovenia-Party of Democratic Renewal. Ciril Ribičič, a well-known Communist politician, became the new leader. In April 1990, Slovenia held its first democratic elections. The party did not win, but it became the largest single party in the country.

Between 1990 and 1992, the party was not part of the government. In 1992, they joined a new government led by Janez Drnovšek. That same year, the party changed its name again to Social Democratic Renewal.

Forming the United List

Before the 1992 elections, several left-leaning parties decided to work together. They formed a group called the United List. This group included the Social Democratic Renewal and three smaller parties. In the 1992 election, the United List became the third strongest political group in Slovenia.

These three largest parties, including the United List, decided to form a "grand coalition" government. This government was led by Prime Minister Janez Drnovšek.

On May 29, 1993, the groups in the United List officially joined to form one party. They named it the United List of Social Democrats. Janez Kocijančič was chosen as its first president. The party was part of the government until January 1996. They left because they disagreed with the government's social welfare plans. After this, some members left and formed a new party. In the 1996 elections, the United List of Social Democrats lost a lot of support.

The Borut Pahor Years

From 1996 to 2000, the party was not in the government. In 1997, Borut Pahor became the new party president. He began to move the party towards more moderate ideas. In the 2000 election, the party gained more votes and joined a centre-left government. Borut Pahor was also elected as the chairman of the Slovenian National Assembly. In the 2004 elections, the party went back into opposition.

In 2005, the party decided to shorten its name to just the Social Democrats. Borut Pahor remained the party president. In 2006, the party made it clear that they were moving away from their communist past. Their president publicly spoke against the socialist government that existed in Slovenia after World War II.

After 2004, the Social Democrats became the main centre-left party opposing the government. In 2007, some important members from another party joined the Social Democrats. This made the Social Democrats the second largest party in Slovenia.

In September 2008, the Social Democrats won the parliamentary election with the most votes. They formed a new government with other parties. They won 29 seats in the 90-member National Assembly. In 2011, the party won 10 seats and was in third place.

Recent Leaders

In June 2012, Igor Lukšič became the new president of the Social Democrats. In 2013, the Social Democrats joined a new government. However, after the 2014 European Parliament election, where the party won only one seat, Lukšič resigned.

Dejan Židan was then elected as the new leader of the party. In the 2014 Slovenian parliamentary election, the party won 6 seats. In September 2014, the Social Democrats joined another government.

In the 2018 parliamentary election, the party improved its results, winning ten seats. The Social Democrats then joined the government until January 2020. Since 2020, Tanja Fajon led the party until 2024, when Matjaž Han became the new leader.

International Connections

The Social Democrats are part of several international groups. Since 2003, they have been a full member of the Party of European Socialists (PES). This is a group of social democratic parties from across Europe. They also helped create the Progressive Alliance in 2013, which is another international group of progressive political parties.

Electoral Results

These tables show how the Social Democrats have performed in elections over the years.

National Assembly

Election	Leader	Votes	%	Seats	+/–	Government
1990	Ciril Ribičič	186,928	17.28 (#1)	14 / 80	14	Opposition
1992		161,349	13.58 (#3)	14 / 90		Coalition
1996	Janez Kocijančič	96,597	9.03 (#5)	9 / 90	5	Opposition
2000	Borut Pahor	130,079	12.08 (#3)	11 / 90	2	Coalition
2004		98,527	10.17 (#3)	10 / 90	1	Opposition
2008		320,248	30.45 (#1)	29 / 90	19	Coalition
2011		115,952	10.52 (#3)	10 / 90	19	Opposition, 2012–13
						Coalition, 2013–14
2014	Dejan Židan	52,249	5.98 (#4)	6 / 90	4	Coalition
2018		88,524	9.93 (#3)	10 / 90	4	Coalition, 2018–20
						Opposition, 2020–22
2022	Tanja Fajon	79.709	6.69 (#4)	7 / 90	3	Coalition

European Parliament

Election	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
2004	61,672	14.2 (#4)	1 / 7
2009	85,407	18.4 (#2)	2 / 8	1
2014	32,484	8.1 (#5)	1 / 8	1
2019	89,936	18.7 (#2)	2 / 8	1

Presidential Elections

Independent candidate, support

Party Leaders

• Ciril Ribičič, 1990–1993
• Peter Bekeš, 1993
• Janez Kocijančič, 1993–1997
• Borut Pahor, 1997–2012
• Igor Lukšič, 2012–2014
• Dejan Židan, 2014–2020
• Tanja Fajon, 2020–2024
• Matjaž Han, 2024–

See also

In Spanish: Socialdemócratas (Eslovenia) para niños