Regionalist Parties in the European Union: A Force to Be Reckoned With?

The aim of this paper is to portray the importance of regionalist parties in the European Union. The processes of globalization and European integration in the last two decades have substantially redefined the role of the nation state in Europe. When we talk about the dimensions of politics in the European Union, we speak of a national and a supranational level, yet a third, sub-national or regional level should not be overlooked. The Europeanization of national party politics and growing cross-border cooperation has increased the importance of regionalism and regionalist parties as an important factor of European politics and party competition. This article seeks to explore the role regionalist parties play in the European Union, spanning across several groups and party families in the European Parliament, working towards a Europe of Regions, instead of a Europe of Nations or a European Federation