Finnish name Kristillisdemokraatit Newspaper KD-lehti | Swedish name Kristdemokraterna Founded 1958 | |
Headquarters Karjalankatu 2 C 7 krs.FIN - 00520 HELSINKI | ||
The Christian Democrats (Finnish: Kristillisdemokraatit, KD; Swedish: Kristdemokraterna) is a Christian democratic political party in Finland. The Christian Democrats have five seats in the Finnish Parliament. The party was represented in the Finnish government by Minister of Interior Päivi Räsänen from June 22, 2011 until May 29, 2015.
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The party was founded in 1958, chiefly by the Christian faction of the National Coalition Party, as the Finnish Christian League (Suomen Kristillinen Liitto, SKL; Finlands Kristliga Förbund.) The party adopted its current name in 2001.
Ideology
The party describes itself as following the tenets of Christian Democracy. It emphasizes "respect of human dignity, the importance of family and close communities, defending the weak, encouraging resourcefulness and individual and collective responsibility, not just for themselves but also for their neighbours and the rest of creation". Membership is open to everyone who agrees with these values and aims. The party also claims to be committed to environmental protection.
The party has lost many of its members to bigger centre-right parties after 1990s, mainly to the National Coalition and Centre Party. KD MP Lyly Rajala and MEP Eija-Riitta Korhola defected to the National Coalition in 2003, and the former party secretary Annika Kokko moved to the National Coalition in 2007.
English-speaking members of the party founded their own chapter in Helsinki in 2004. Its monthly meetings attract immigrants to participate in societal matters and the issues that are particularly important to them. In 2005, a Russian-speaking chapter was also founded in Helsinki.
The party is an observer member of the European People's Party (EPP.)
KD-lehti (English: CD News) is the party's weekly newspaper.
List of party chairs
Current members of parliament
European Parliament
Sari Essayah was the most recent MEP of the party; she was elected to the European Parliament in the 2009 election but failed to win re-election in 2014.