What is a political party?
The nutshell
A political party is a group of people who share ideas about how the country should be run. A party picks candidates for elections and works to win seats in Parliament.
Every fact on this page comes from official rules and non-partisan explainers. Each source tag — like EC — opens where a fact comes from.
The basics
What a political party is
A political party is a group of people who share ideas about how the country should be run. A party picks candidates to stand at elections. The aim is to win seats in Parliament and help run the country.
Standing at elections
To put a party name on a ballot paper, a party must first register with the Electoral Commission.EC A registered party can also add a short description or an emblem — a small logo — next to its name.EC An MP who belongs to no party is called an Independent.Parl
How parties shape the government
Nearly all MPs belong to a party.Parl After a general election, the party with the most MPs normally forms the government, and its leader becomes Prime Minister.Parl The next largest party becomes the official Opposition — the main party that is not in government.Parl
Members and the whip
A party is also a membership organisation that people can join.HoC Each party gives its MPs a whip — a written instruction on how to vote.IfG An MP who loses the whip sits as an Independent.IfG
- A party sets out a clear programme, so a vote is a choice between plans, not just names
- A party with a majority can pass its plans, so a government can act on what it promised
- A shared party label helps voters reward or punish a party at the next election
- The whip can push an MP to vote with the party even against local views
- Almost every UK government since 1945 has been Labour or Conservative, which can squeeze smaller parties
- Party funding and internal rules can be hard for voters to see into
The deep end6 min
What a party is, and what it does
A political party brings together people who share broad aims for how the country should be run. A party selects candidates to stand at elections under a shared name. The Electoral Commission runs the official register of parties, and a party must register before its name, description or emblem can appear on a ballot paper.EC
Parties and the shape of government
Nearly all MPs sit for a party, and an MP without one is known as an Independent, according to UK Parliament.Parl After a general election, the party with the most MPs normally forms the government and its leader is appointed Prime Minister, while the next largest party becomes the official Opposition.Parl Since 1945, almost every UK government has been formed by either the Labour Party or the Conservative Party.
Members, and the pull of the whip
A party is also a membership organisation. The House of Commons Library notes that parties are under no legal duty to publish membership figures, so exact numbers are hard to pin down.HoC Inside Parliament, each party runs a whip system. The Institute for Government describes the whip as a written instruction from a party telling its MPs how to vote, backed by tools such as influence over promotion.IfG
An MP who breaks a strict whip can have the whip removed and then sits as an Independent, according to the Institute for Government.IfG Party unity in votes is one reason a government with a Commons majority can usually pass its plans.