Political groups of the European Parliament Group" (which eventually became the S&D group), the "Christian Democrat Group" (later EPP group) and the "Liberals and Allies Group" (later ALDE group). As the Parliament developed, other Groups emerged. Gaullists from France founded the European Democratic Union Group. When Conservatives from Denmark and the United Kingdom joined, they created the European Conservatives Group, which (after some name changes) eventually merged with the Group of the European People's Party. The 1979 first direct election established further groups and the establishment of European political parties such as the European People's Party. A full breakdown of Groups by complexion and timeline is
Political groups of the European Parliament Political groups of the European Parliament The political groups of the European Parliament are the parliamentary groups of the European Parliament. The European Parliament is unique among supranational assemblies in that its members (MEPs) organise themselves into ideological groups as in traditional national legislatures. The members of other supranational assemblies form national groups. The political groups of the European Parliament are sometimes the formal representation of a European political party in the Parliament. In other cases, they are political coalitions of a number of European parties, national parties, and independent politicians. These groups are not parties, but looser coalitions. They