Refoundation for the Left

Refoundation for the Left (Rifondazione per la Sinistra, RpS) is a faction within the Communist Refoundation Party, a political party in Italy. Most of its members launched the Movement for the Left (MpS) in late January 2009. Another part of its members decided not to leave the Party, "going on with the Refoudation process".

RpS emerged as a faction within the Communist Refoundation Party (PRC) gathering the Bertinottiani, the group around Fausto Bertinotti, who controlled the majority of the party from 1998 to 2008. They supported the candidacy of Nichi Vendola for party secretary in the 24–27 July 2008 congress of the party. Vendola was defeated and Paolo Ferrero, a former bertinottiano who gained the support of the party's left-wing, became secretary. The faction was officially launched during a "national assembly" on 27 September 2008.

Refoundation for the Left represented the modernisers within the party and supports the creation of a united left with greens, socialists and other radicals (in fact they were among the keenest supporters of The Left – The Rainbow), both in Italy and in Europe. As Vendola explained in an interview, he will seek an alliance with the Democratic Party, excluding Antonio Di Pietro's Italy of Values, whose "justicialism" is an "illness".

In January 2009 the new leadership of the party replaced the editor of Liberazione, the party's newspaper, removing Piero Sansonetti, close to Vendola. The decision was strongly opposed by Vendoliani. At the same time Ferrero ruled out any alliance for the European Parliament election, in which the party will run alone, provoking another rift with Vendoliani, who were keen supporters joint-list with other left-wing forces, and that was considered another step toward the break-up of the party.

...
Wikipedia