Political party

How it is used

Often shortened to party. People join, found, lead or leave a party; parties put forward candidates, publish programmes and win seats. News reports refer to the ruling party, the main opposition party and smaller parties.

Example sentences

1. Three political parties passed the threshold and entered parliament.

2. Under the new rules, political parties will have to publish their annual accounts online.

Common collocations

• join a political party
• found a party
• party leader
• party member
• main opposition party

Related terms

• ruling partyThe political party that is in power and forms the government, either alone or as the largest member of a coalition.
• oppositionThe parties in parliament that are not part of the government, especially the largest of them, whose role is to question the government and offer an alternative.
• coalitionAn arrangement in which two or more political parties agree to work together, especially to form a government when no single party has a majority.
• ideologyA connected set of ideas and beliefs about how society should be organized and what government should do, which guides a political group or movement.
• manifestoA written statement in which a political party sets out its aims and the policies it promises to introduce if it wins an election.

More terms: Parties and Ideologies

• left-wing
• right-wing
• conservative
• liberal
• centrist