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Coalition of Progressive Socialists Συνασπισμός Προοδευτικών Σοσιαλιστών
Leader	Christos Mikelakos
Chairperson	Rena Elia
Founder	Filippos Rodas
Founded	10 January 1965 (1965-01-10)
Headquarters	100 Abdioch Street, Arcadia, Lihnidos
Student wing	Socialist Students
Youth wing	Young Socialists
Membership (2018)	102,472
Ideology	Democratic socialism Social democracy Left-wing populism Progressivism
Colors	Red
National Assembly	19 / 350
Provincial councils	2 / 140
Provincial governments	0 / 20
Local governments	3,009 / 34,547

The Coalition of Progressive Socialists (Hellenic: Συνασπισμός Προοδευτικών Σοσιαλιστών), also known as the CPS or the Socialists, is a center-left to far-left political party in Lihnidos. The CPS is one of four minor political parties in Lihnidos and the third largest party in the National Assembly. The party was formed in 1965 as a response to the Democratic Coalition's moderation on policy following its rebranding from the Labor Union Party. Since its creation, the CPS's strategy has primarily been to campaign against the Democratic Coalition with the intent to draw left-wing voters discontent with the DC's moderate stance on several issues to the CPS.

The Coalition of Progressive Socialists has never held a majority in the National Assembly and has never held more than nineteen seats. The party was a member of a government coalition with the Democratic Coalition from 1998 to 2002 when the Democratic Coalition failed to secure a majority and form a government following the 1998 general election. In 2002 the Democratic Coalition secured a majority and the coalition did not continue. The 2018 general election resulted in the Socialists gaining two seats, bringing their total seat count to nineteen, the most seats the party has ever secured.

History

Founding

The Coalition of Progressive Socialists was officially founded on 10 January 1965. Discussions regarding the formation of a socialist party had been underway since the early 1900s following the rebranding of the Labor Union Party into the Democratic Coalition. Legal and bureaucratic hurdles prevented any serious attempt to form a party until the early 1960s when Filippos Rodas along with two others disaffected with the Democratic Coalition's moderation on policy began the process with the National Board of Elections. Filippos Rodas, the grandson of Petros Rodas who had been expelled from the Democratic Coalition in 1897 by the DC leadership, had been a longtime critic of the Democratic Coalition despite officially being a member and the National Assembly Deputy for Serres's fourteenth constituency. Democratic Coalition leadership, aware of the ongoing attempts to form a new party, refused to allow Rodas to run for reelection to his seat as a member of the Democratic Coalition in 1962 and expelled him from the party. He subsequently lost reelection when running as an independent.

As Rodas and his allies began to near approval for the creation of their socialist party, Democratic Coalition leaders, seeing the creation of the party as a threat, lobbied the National Board of Elections to bar the party's creation and reconsider its previous decisions with regards to the party's approval. Democratic leadership made appeals to the public and private appeals to the executive branch, often using fearmongering tactics, and reportedly going so far as to cite the August Revolution in Liothidia as a reason for the party's banning when in discussions with Empress Stella I. Despite the Democratic Coalition government's strong opposition to the party's creation, the independent National Board of Elections approved the creation of the party in December of 1964 and the official founding date was a month later.

Electoral campaigns and results

National Assembly

The following table shows the electoral performance of the Coalition of Progressive Socialists in general elections since the party's creation in 1965.

National Assembly of Lihnidos
Election	Leader	Seats won	+/−	Rank	Government	Notes
1966	Filippos Rodas	4 / 300	4	#3	Opposition
1970	Filippos Rodas	3 / 300	1	#3	Opposition
1974	Filippos Rodas	3 / 300		#3	Opposition
1978	Filippos Rodas	5 / 300	2	#3	Opposition
1982	Iasonas Kakos	6 / 300	1	#3	Opposition
1986	Iasonas Kakos	4 / 300	2	#3	Opposition
1990	Iasonas Kakos	11 / 350	7	#3	Opposition
1994	Stelios Vlachos	12 / 350	1	#3	Opposition
1998	Kiriaki Perri	14 / 350	2	#3	Government
2002	Kiriaki Perri	11 / 350	3	#3	Opposition
2006	Christos Mikelakos	13 / 350	2	#3	Opposition
2010	Christos Mikelakos	15 / 350	2	#3	Opposition
2014	Christos Mikelakos	17 / 350	2	#3	Opposition
2018	Christos Mikelakos	19 / 350	2	#3	Opposition

See also

• List of political parties in Lihnidos
• List of Lihnidosi general elections
• National Assembly of Lihnidos