Edelweiss Aosta Valley is a Christian-democratic

Christian Democracy

Christian democracy is a political ideology that seeks to apply Christian principles to public policy. It emerged in nineteenth-century Europe under the influence of conservatism and Catholic social teaching...

 and centrist

Centrism

In politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...

 Italian political party active in Aosta Valley.

It was founded in 2001 by the merger of the Autonomists

Autonomists

The Autonomists was a Christian-democratic Italian political party active in Aosta Valley.It was founded in 1997 by the union of the regional Italian People's Party with For Aosta Valley and some former Socialists. In the 1998 regional election Autonomists won 12.8% and five regional deputies...

 and the Autonomist Federation

Autonomist Federation

The Autonomist Federation is a centrist, social-liberal and social-democratic Italian political party active in Aosta Valley...

. The Autonomists were basically the Valdotanian section of the Italian People's Party

Italian People's Party (1994-2002)

The Italian People's Party was a Christian democratic political party in Italy-History:The party emerged as the successor to Christian Democracy in January 1994...

, one of the successors of Christian Democracy

Christian Democracy (Italy)

Christian Democracy was a Christian democratic party in Italy. It was founded in 1943 as the ideological successor of the historical Italian People's Party, which had the same symbol, a crossed shield ....

, while the Autonomist Federation was formed basically by former Autonomists Democrats Progressives

Autonomists Democrats Progressives

The Autonomists Democrats Progressives was a social-liberal and Christian-leftist Italian political party active in Aosta Valley...

, along with former Socialists

Italian Socialist Party

The Italian Socialist Party was a socialist and later social-democratic political party in Italy founded in Genoa in 1892.Once the dominant leftist party in Italy, it was eclipsed in status by the Italian Communist Party following World War II...

 and of the Republicans

Italian Republican Party

The Italian Republican Party is a liberal political party in Italy.The PRI is party with old roots that originally took a left-wing position, claiming descent from the political position of Giuseppe Mazzini...

.

In the 2003 regional election, SA scored 19.8% and got elected seven regional deputies. Soon later the Autonomist Federation re-gained its independence from SA. From 2001 to 2006, SA was represented in the Italian Chamber of Deputies

Italian Chamber of Deputies

The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...

 by Ivo Collé. The party currently controls five seats in the Regional Council. Of the five regional deputies, four are former members of Christian Democracy and one is a former Republican.

In the 2006 general election

Italian general election, 2006

In the Italian general election, 2006 for the renewal of the two Chambers of the Parliament of Italy held on April 9 and April 10, 2006 the incumbent prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, leader of the center-right House of Freedoms, was narrowly defeated by Romano Prodi, leader of the center-left The...

, the party formed an alliance with the Valdotanian Union

Valdotanian Union

The Valdotanian Union is a regionalist-centrist Italian political party active in Aosta Valley. Its leaders are Ego Perron, party president, and Augusto Rollandin, President of the Region....

 and the Autonomist Federation (SA leader Marco Viérin was candidate for the Chamber of Deputies), the Autonomy Progress Federalism Aosta Valley

Autonomy Progress Federalism Aosta Valley

Autonomy Progress Federalism Aosta Valley is an Italian coalition of parties active in Aosta Valley....

, but was soundly defeated by the centre-left

Centre-left

Centre-left is a political term that describes individuals, political parties or organisations such as think tanks whose ideology lies between the centre and the left on the left-right spectrum...

 list Autonomy Liberty Democracy

Autonomy Liberty Democracy

Autonomy Liberty Democracy is an Italian coalition of parties active in Aosta Valley.It was originally formed as an electoral list, affiliated to the The Union, for the 2006 general election and originally comprised: the Democrats of the Left, Democracy is Freedom – The Daisy, Valdotanian Renewal,...

.

In the 2008 regional election

Valdotanian regional election, 2008

The Valdotanian regional election of 2008 took place on 25 May 2008.-Results:Source:...

 the party, which included four candidates of the Union of Christian and Centre Democrats (UDC) in its list, won 11.4% of the vote and 4 regional deputies (out of 35), while the three-party regionalist coalition

Autonomy Progress Federalism Aosta Valley

Autonomy Progress Federalism Aosta Valley is an Italian coalition of parties active in Aosta Valley....

 won 62.0% and a large majority, composed of 22 regional deputies. No candidate of UDC was elected.

Leadership

• President: Maurizio Martin (2001–present)
• Secretary: Rudi Marguerettaz (2001–present)