The Characteristic Features of Christian Democratic Parties in the Member States of the European Union

Abstract

Christian Democracy has been very influential political force in postwar Western Europe. Christian Democratic parties (developing into the people’s party) largely shaped the postwar consensus of democratic governance, anty-communism and a moderately interventionist welfare state. They also played a leading role in the creation of European Economic Community and – since the end of Cold War – its subsequent enlargement and transformation into the current European Union. Christian Democracy is fundamental for understanding postwar and post-Cold War European history and politics. This article presents specificity of Christian Democratic parties in the countries of the European Union and highlights some of the particularities and universalities of European Christian Democracy from a comparative and transnational perspectives. Authors (political scientists) examine the phenomenon of European Christian Democratic parties with respect to such issues as genesis of political parties, consociational democracy,'catch-all' party model and the concept of a political center.