The Party for Democracy (Partido por la Democracia) is a political party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

 in Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

; it is social democratic in its political orientation. It was founded in December 1987 by Ricardo Lagos

Ricardo Lagos

Ricardo Froilán Lagos Escobar is a lawyer, economist and social democrat politician, who served as president of Chile from 2000 to 2006. He won the 1999-2000 presidential election by a narrow margin in a runoff over Independent Democrat Union candidate Joaquín Lavín...

, who aimed at forming a legal social democratic party (the Socialist Party remained illegal at the time). The party continued to function after the defeat of Pinochet. Until 1997, double membership of PPD and the Socialist Party was allowed. In the parliamentary elections held since the return of democracy to Chile, the Party for Democracy has invariably won somewhat more votes (and seats) than the Socialist Party.

The party nominated, as part of the Concertación (Coalition of Parties for Democracy

Coalition of Parties for Democracy

The Concert of Parties for Democracy , more often known as the Concertación, is a coalition of center-left political parties in Chile, founded in 1988...

), in the 1999/2000 presidential

President of Chile

The President of the Republic of Chile is both the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Chile. The President is responsible of the government and state administration...

 elections Ricardo Lagos Escobar, the main leader of the party, who won 48.0 % in the first round and was elected with 51.3 % in the second round. At the 2001 legislative election

Chilean parliamentary election, 2005

The 2005 Chilean parliamentary election took place on December 11, 2005, in conjunction with the presidential election. All of the 120 seats in the Chamber of Deputies were contested, while 20 out of 38 seats in the Senate were up for election . Deputies serve for a period of four years, while...

, the party ran as part of the Coalition of Parties for Democracy

Coalition of Parties for Democracy

The Concert of Parties for Democracy , more often known as the Concertación, is a coalition of center-left political parties in Chile, founded in 1988...

 and won 20 out of 120 seats in the Chamber of Deputies

Chamber of Deputies of Chile

The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....

 and 3 out of 38 elected seats in the Senate

Senate of Chile

The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile.-Composition:...

. This changed at the 2005 elections

Chilean parliamentary election, 2005

The 2005 Chilean parliamentary election took place on December 11, 2005, in conjunction with the presidential election. All of the 120 seats in the Chamber of Deputies were contested, while 20 out of 38 seats in the Senate were up for election . Deputies serve for a period of four years, while...

 to 21 and 3. In 2009

Chilean parliamentary election, 2009

Parliamentary elections were held in Chile on December 13, 2009, in conjunction with the presidential election. The totality of seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 18 out of 38 seats in the Senate were up for election....

, it won 18 seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 4 in the Senate.