The Union for French Democracy (Union pour la Démocratie Française, UDF) was a centrist political party in France. It was founded in 1978 as an electoral alliance to support President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing in order to counterbalance the Gaullist preponderance over the right. This name was chosen due to the title of Giscard d'Estaing's 1976 book, French Democracy. The UDF effectively ceased to exist by the end of 2007, and its membership and assets were transferred to its successor party, the Democratic Movement (MoDem).
The founding parties of the UDF were the Christian -democratic Centre of Social Democrats (CDS), the conservative-liberal Republican Party (PR), the social-liberal Radical Party (Rad.), the centre-left Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the centrist Perspectives and Realities Clubs (CPR). The UDF was most frequently a junior partner in coalitions with the Gaullist Rally for the Republic (RPR) and its successor party, the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP). Prior to its dissolution, the UDF became a single entity, due to the defection of Republicans, Radicals and most Christian Democrats to the UMP and the merger of the other centrist components. The party's last leader was François Bayrou, who transferred his leadership to the MoDem party.
Read more about Union For French Democracy: Ideology and Political Position, Factions, Presidents
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