Parti Breton
Encyclopedia
The Breton Party is a social-democratic and social-liberal nationalist party which aspires to the creation of an independent "Republic of Brittany
", within the European Union
.
of "Brittany" and the département of Loire-Atlantique
, which includes Nantes
, the former capital of the Duchy of Brittany. Its aspirations include regional autonomy comparable to other European regions as Scotland
or Catalonia
, or full independence, as with Ireland
.
The main idea is that Brittany has always been a nation
, therefore has rights and liberties within the European Union
. The Breton Party claims the creation of a Breton State, member of the European Union, officially recognized by international authorities. It argues that beyond the principle that a nation should have independent rights, Brittany also has everything to gain by such a process of emancipation, on economic, cultural or environmental fronts.
The slogan of the Breton Party is "emancipated and reunited Brittany". Analyzing the causes for the "stagnation of the Breton political movements", the party wants "to take the Bretons as they are and not as one would like them to be". In terms of the left-right axis, the Breton Party is considered to be centrist. The main objective is first of all to create Breton political institutions. Claiming 400 members, most of whom have had no association with the earlier Breton movement
, the Breton Party has members from the center-left, such as the professor and the contractor Jean-Paul Moisan from Nantes
, or the center-right, such as Gérard Olliéric, the current president of the party.
and were received by the Lehendakari
, leader of the Basque government.
In the general election of 2007, 4 candidates were put forward:
In a local by-election in Redon on September 23, 2007, Émile Granville obtained 3.58%. In a 2009 by-election in the same canton, he won 4.08%.
In 2008, Yann Jestin, president of Askol, obtained 25.18% of the votes during the cantonal elections in Lesneven
.
During the municipal elections in March 2008, the Breton Party ran about twenty candidates and obtained about ten municipal elected representatives among whom were a mayor and three deputies.
In the 2009 European elections
, the party ran one list in the West constituency, which won 2.45% across the five Breton departments. Its highest result was 3.41% in the Finistère
. It won up to 16% in a commune
in the Côtes-d'Armor
department.
In the French regional elections, 2010
the Breton Party fielded candidates in Brittany and the Pays de Loire regions, viz;
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
", within the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
.
Program
The movement was created in 2002. Its objective is to give Brittany the necessary institutions for its economic, social, cultural, environmental and political development. "Brittany" is defined as both the modern administrative RégionRegion
Region is most commonly found as a term used in terrestrial and astrophysics sciences also an area, notably among the different sub-disciplines of geography, studied by regional geographers. Regions consist of subregions that contain clusters of like areas that are distinctive by their uniformity...
of "Brittany" and the département of Loire-Atlantique
Loire-Atlantique
Loire-Atlantique is a department on the west coast of France named after the Loire River and the Atlantic Ocean.-History:...
, which includes Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, the former capital of the Duchy of Brittany. Its aspirations include regional autonomy comparable to other European regions as Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
or Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
, or full independence, as with Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
.
The main idea is that Brittany has always been a nation
Nation
A nation may refer to a community of people who share a common language, culture, ethnicity, descent, and/or history. In this definition, a nation has no physical borders. However, it can also refer to people who share a common territory and government irrespective of their ethnic make-up...
, therefore has rights and liberties within the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. The Breton Party claims the creation of a Breton State, member of the European Union, officially recognized by international authorities. It argues that beyond the principle that a nation should have independent rights, Brittany also has everything to gain by such a process of emancipation, on economic, cultural or environmental fronts.
The slogan of the Breton Party is "emancipated and reunited Brittany". Analyzing the causes for the "stagnation of the Breton political movements", the party wants "to take the Bretons as they are and not as one would like them to be". In terms of the left-right axis, the Breton Party is considered to be centrist. The main objective is first of all to create Breton political institutions. Claiming 400 members, most of whom have had no association with the earlier Breton movement
Breton nationalism
Breton nationalism is the nationalism of the traditional province of Brittany in France. Brittany is considered to be one of the six Celtic nations...
, the Breton Party has members from the center-left, such as the professor and the contractor Jean-Paul Moisan from Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, or the center-right, such as Gérard Olliéric, the current president of the party.
Youth Wing
Ar Vretoned Yaouank is the youth section of the party created in 2007. Its purpose is to lead activities specific to youth connected to the party, but in an informal way. In 2006 the Young Bretons participated in the International Youth Days organized by the Basque National Party in BilbaoBilbao
Bilbao ) is a Spanish municipality, capital of the province of Biscay, in the autonomous community of the Basque Country. With a population of 353,187 , it is the largest city of its autonomous community and the tenth largest in Spain...
and were received by the Lehendakari
Lehendakari
The President of the Basque Government , usually known in English as the Basque regional president, is the head of government of Basque Country. The president leads the executive branch of the regional government....
, leader of the Basque government.
Elections
The Breton Party has contested several elections: two by-elections in 2004, and again in 2005. Its candidates obtained for their first outing between 1.5% and 4% of the vote.In the general election of 2007, 4 candidates were put forward:
- Yves Le Mestric for the constituency of VitréVitré, Ille-et-VilaineVitré is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in north-western France.Vitré, a sub-prefecture until 1926, is the seat of a canton of around 17,000 inhabitants . It lies on the edge of Brittany, near Normandy, Maine, and Anjou...
(Ille-et-Villaine): 686 votes or 0.89% - Gérard Guillemot for the constituency of RennesRennesRennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
(Ille-et-Villaine): 249 votes or 0.57% - Emile Granville for the constituency of Redon (Ille-et-Villaine): 847 votes or 1.27%
- Hervé Le Guen for the constituency of LorientLorientLorient, or L'Orient, is a commune and a seaport in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.-History:At the beginning of the 17th century, merchants who were trading with India had established warehouses in Port-Louis...
(MorbihanMorbihanMorbihan is a department in Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan , the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline.-History:...
): 686 votes or 1.44%
In a local by-election in Redon on September 23, 2007, Émile Granville obtained 3.58%. In a 2009 by-election in the same canton, he won 4.08%.
In 2008, Yann Jestin, president of Askol, obtained 25.18% of the votes during the cantonal elections in Lesneven
Lesneven
Lesneven is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France.It lies northeast of Brest, about from the English Channel in the middle of the Leon plateau.-History:...
.
During the municipal elections in March 2008, the Breton Party ran about twenty candidates and obtained about ten municipal elected representatives among whom were a mayor and three deputies.
In the 2009 European elections
European Parliament election, 2009 (France)
European elections to elect 72 French Members of the European Parliament were held on Sunday 7 June 2009.Due to the entry of Romania and Bulgaria in the European Union in 2007, the number of seats allocated to France was revised from 78 seats to 72 seats, a loss of 6 seats...
, the party ran one list in the West constituency, which won 2.45% across the five Breton departments. Its highest result was 3.41% in the Finistère
Finistère
Finistère is a département of France, in the extreme west of Brittany.-History:The name Finistère derives from the Latin Finis Terræ, meaning end of the earth, and may be compared with Land's End on the opposite side of the English Channel...
. It won up to 16% in a commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Côtes-d'Armor
Côtes-d'Armor
Côtes-d'Armor is a department in the north of Brittany, in northwestern France.-History:Côtes-du-Nord was one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Brittany. Its name was changed in 1990 to...
department.
In the French regional elections, 2010
French regional elections, 2010
Regional elections were held in France on 14 and 21 March 2010. At stake were the presidencies of each of France's 26 régions, which, though they do not have legislative autonomy, manage sizable budgets....
the Breton Party fielded candidates in Brittany and the Pays de Loire regions, viz;
- Christian Troadec for the presidency of Brittany: 47,108 votes or 4.29%
- Jacky Flippot for the presidency of Pays de Loire: 11,669 votes or 0.99% (most from the city of NantesNantesNantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
)