Majorca Socialist Party

Majorca Socialist Party Partit Socialista de Mallorca
Leader	Collegial presidency
Founded	1976
Headquarters	C/Isidoro Antillón, nº 9, baixos, 07006 - Palma de Mallorca
Ideology	Democratic socialism Environmentalism Catalan nationalism
European affiliation	European Free Alliance
Official colours	Red, White
Local Government	59 / 66,046
Parliament of the Balearic Islands	4 / 59
Congress of Deputies	0 / 350
Spanish Senate	1 / 264
European Parliament	0 / 50 website = www.psm-entesa.cat

The Majorca Socialist Party (Catalan: Partit Socialista de Mallorca, PSM; IPA: [pərˈtit sosiəˈɫistə ðə məˈʎɔrcə]) is a political party in Majorca, Spain. The PSM defines itself as socialist, environmentalist, and Catalan nationalist, from a Majorcan point of view.

PSM was founded in 1976 as the Balearic Island's Socialist Party (Partit Socialista de les Illes-PSI). In December 1977 it renamed itself Partit Socialista de Mallorca (PSM). Unlike most of the other Spanish socialist parties, PSM refused to join the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE).

It advocates the self-determination and the freedom of the Balearic Island's, with social justice, to increase the identity and the self-government of the archipielago. It also calls for a closer relationship with the other Catalan Countries, now forbidden to be achieved in a confederation of three Spanish autonomous communities by the Spanish constitution(art.145). Therefore its political ascription is a Majorcan political party, regionalist or progressive-stateless nationalist, environmental, socialist and democratic.

In 1989 it strengthened an alliance with other progressive and nationalist parties of Minorca and Ibiza, Partit Socialista de Menorca (Socialist Party of Minorca) and l'Entesa Nacionalista Ecologista de Eivissa (Environmental and Nacionalist Agreement of Ibiza), summing up other local progressive and nationalist parties. The name of the alliance was PSM-Entesa Nacionalista (PSM-Nationalist Agreement). Its representation in the autonomous parliament was between 7% and 15% of the votes.^[1]

Usually as an opposition party, PSM belonged in the Majorca Government from 1995 until 2003, and in the Balearic Islands Government from 1999 until 2003. In both governments, with other progressive Spanish parties.^[1]

In the 2004 Spanish general elections, PSM was in a coalition in the Balearic Islands electoral district with United Left-Esquerra Unida, Balearic Islands' Green Party-Els Verds de les Illes Balears, and Republican Left of Catalonia, as the Balearic Island's Progressive coalition (Progressistes per les Illes Balears) This coalition obtained 40,289 votes (12%). However, no representation in the Spanish central parliament was obtained.

In 2007, this coalition was enlarged, making up the new coalition "Majorca's Bloc" (Bloc per Mallorca) with the same allies of the former Balearic Island's Progressive coalition. The coalition got 4 MPs (14%) in the Balearic Parliament (2 of them PSM). After negotiations, PSM and the other Bloc's parties, decided to enter in the autonomous government, with PSOE and Majorcan Union (liberal regionalists), leaving the People's Party (conservatives) in the opposition.^[1]

In 2008, the party decided to change their allies for the Spanish general elections. Its allies were then Majorcan Union, Republican Left of Catalonia and Entesa per Mallorca (former PSM members). The coalition United Left-Esquerra Unida refused to include them in its electoral lists. However 29% of the members wanted to follow the former alliance with Esquerra Unida and the Green Party. Most of them were members of the PSM-Left Nationalist Youth (Joves d'Esquerra Nacionalista-PSM). With less than 30,000 votes, no representation in the Spanish central parliament was obtained.

In 2008, PSM became a full member of the European Free Alliance (EFA).

PSM-Balearic Government candidates

• 1983: Sebastià Serra
• 1987: Sebastià Serra
• 1991: Mateu Morro
• 1995: Pere Sampol
• 1999: Pere Sampol
• 2003: Pere Sampol
• 2007: Gabriel Barceló (Bloc per Mallorca coalition)

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Balearic Islands election results, Historiaelectoral.com accessed 18 April 2011