Democratic Party (Cobura)

The Democratic Party - Democratic Cobura (DECO) is a political party of the new left in Cobura. The party was founded by Nikos Venizelos in 3472 as a reaction to the wave of privatisations in the late 3460s.

Background and foundation
The Democratic Party was founded by Nikos Venizelos, a university professor at the University of Irkawa, as a reaction to the wave of economic liberalism in the latter part of the 3460s. The tax and budget cuts that were made at the time hit the public schools hard, and over two hundred professors and teachers across the capital went into strike. Initially, the Democratic Party was part of a coalition with the Democratic Cobura Party. Even though the two parties merged in January 3473, the name Democratic Party - Democratic Cobura has since been kept, though the party appears simply as 'Democratic Party' on the ballot. This is the reason why the Democrats typically abbreviate their party's name as 'DECO'. Despite the Democratic Party's working-class-oriented origins, the party decided on its first congress not to label itself as a labour party, but rather as a progressive party of the new left.

Political platform
The Democratic Party holds no official ideology described in its manifesto, but has claimed at several occasions to adhere to the principles of progressivism, environmentalism and civil libertarianism. Therefore, the Democrats remain mostly in favour of movements such as the LGBT liberation movement, alter-globalism and womens' rights activism. Economically, the party is frequently described as socialist or social-democratic, though the Democratic Party has rejected these terms. The Democrats support co-operative economics and the democratisation of the workplace, and seek to put the economy under direct popular democratic control, rather than private or state ownership. However, the party has frequently supported the nationalisation of various businesses.